Earlier quoted context omitted.
For fiscal reasons.
I wanted to share juicy anecdotes about a company I know that does this, but that would be counterproductive. Let's just say asking for tax discounts and credits because you do R&D (or you classify your software dev as R&D) is very usual in France. A key phrase to research if you want to know more is "JEI - jeune entreprise innovante".
"The statute of Jeune Enterprise Innovante (JEI), created in the 2004 budget bill, applies to small to medium businesses (in the EU, that means The benefits seem ridiculous. The article says they include exemption from revenue tax, payroll tax and an exemption from capital gains tax for associates (investors? not sure if I read that bit right).
Seems like the Wikipedia article might be a bit out of date, though. A French government website had a different list of benefits not including anything about capital gains, but adding an exemption for property tax.
Someone native should probably check my understanding, but it looks like you get a pretty sweet deal if you can convince the French government you're doing R&D.