ROME, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Italy will focus its domestic

web tax on big tech companies while shunning small and

medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and publishing groups,

policymakers said on Wednesday.

The move comes despite recent renewed calls from the United

States for the Italian government to scrap the scheme.

In 2019, Rome introduced a 3% levy on revenue from internet

transactions for digital companies with annual sales of at least

750 million euros ($788.40 million) if at least 5.5 million are

made in Italy.

As part of the budget bill, the Treasury tried to remove

these floors for the tax to be applied, in a move critics said

would be a blow to smaller companies.

Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti has said broadening the

scope of Italy's web tax could help the government avoid clashes

with the United States, which considers the scheme unfairly

discriminatory as it mainly targets U.S. tech companies such as

Meta Platforms ( META ), Google and Amazon ( AMZN ).

However, after skirmishes with the co-ruling Forza Italia

party, the government is leaning towards reinstating the 750

million euro revenue floor, a government official and some

lawmakers said.

Rome also wants to cut the IRES corporate tax for companies

that hire and invest under certain conditions.

The measure has an estimated cost of around 400 million

euros, which the Treasury plans to cover by seeking an

additional contribution from banks and insurers, lawmakers

added.

Italy expects to raise more than 5 billion euros from the

financial sector over the next three years through a package of

measures already included in Rome's 2025 budget.

($1 = 0.9513 euros)