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A man fell to his death Thursday after joining a huge party in west France that was organised on the social networking site Facebook according to authorities, sparking concerns over such events.

The man, who left the party in Nantes – one of the several gatherings organised in recent months over the Internet that included up to 10,000 people – landed on his head after falling five meters from a bridge.

Friends accompanying him instantly called for help, police said. Nantes prosecutors revealed the man, a 21-year-old construction worker, suffered severe chest and head injuries. Toxicology tests were in progress.

Previous “aperos geants”, or giant cocktail hours, have prompted concern regarding binge drinking.

A party in November last year had led to 50 cases of alcohol-induced comas as well as falls into the Loire river, and had prompted local authorities to warn organisers of such gatherings.

In anticipation of the night party on Wednesday, Nantes officials had banned the sale of alcohol in a major section of the city centre. Almost 400 police were also mobilised.

Some 41 people were arrested for offences that range from violence to drug trafficking.

Another party held Wednesday night in Montpellier, southern France organised on Facebook drew almost 10,000 people.

The Champ de Mars plaza in Paris will be the venue of another giant drinks party planned on 23 May.

The Paris police issued a formal warning on Thursday against what is gearing up to be the largest impromptu drinks party in France to be held later this month, which they said may pose risks.

Hatched on the Internet, the ‘giant drinks party’, or ‘aperitif’ in French, to take place on 23 May under the Eiffel Tower, has already received over 13,000 online confirmations, and organisers are hoping to attract over 50,000.

A string of similar gatherings have taken place over the past few months, thanks to efforts through Facebook, and ordinarily peaceful cities like Clermont-Ferrand, Brest and Rennes have been inundated by massive throngs of people gathering for drinks.

“We are aware of the festive and friendly motivation of the participants, but there are serious risks associated with crowd management involving several thousand people”, warned the Paris police in a statement.

They added, “Such a gathering cannot be organised without first examining and implementing adequate measures to protect the participants as well as public property”, noting that 14 people were hospitalised in Rennes during one such party, a few of whom were severely ill.

Organisers were also reminded that the Champs de Mars, a vast green area between the Ecole Militaire training academy and the Eiffel Tower in central Paris, was under a strict ban against alcohol consumption.

Planners of giant drinks parties are claiming that they are an inspiring way to use the Internet to promote real-life social encounters.

“Young people are engaged in real encounters instead of virtual contacts”, said sociologist Christophe Moreau from Rennes University.

The move is one suggested in a French government report, which says the revenues could be used to bolster capital investment in legal online access to cultural resources.

The proposed tax, details of which remain scant, is another shot across the bows from the French government which is seeking to crack down on the way in which digital content is impacting on legitimate business in the country.

The announcement comes hot on the heels of France’s controversial “three strikes” internet law, which will seek to remove those guilty of illegal downloading and online piracy from the web by cutting their internet access.

Speaking last month, as internet giant Google fought a copyright case in the French courts over its scanning of French books for its online library,  President Nicolas Sarkozy pledged to defend French businesses from the drain of online content sharing and copyright theft saying: “”We are not going to be stripped of our heritage for the benefit of a big company, no matter how friendly, big or American it is.”

But internet bosses say the measures are short sighted and ill advised and may have an adverse effect on the country’s e-commerce.

Google France senior policy manager said: “We don’t think introducing an additional tax on internet advertising is the right way forward as it could slow down innovation.”

“The better way to support content creation is to find new business models that help consumers find great content and rewards artists and publishers for their work.”