France has been one of the main proponents within the European Union of a movement to impose a 3 percent tax on the revenue of big tech. Ireland, however, which has served as a sort of tax shelter for Apple, in particular, has worked successfully to block the measure. France will go its own way and begin taxing Google, Facebook, Amazon and Apple starting on Jan. 1, 2019. The country expects to collect €500 million in 2019 from the regulations.