CANBERRA, Australia (AP) – Facebook announced on Tuesday that it would lift a ban for Australians to watch and share news on its platform after negotiating a deal with the government on proposed legislation that would make digital giants pay for journalism.
The social media company caused alarm with its sudden decision last week to block news on its platform across Australia after the House of Representatives passed the bill. Initially, the blackout cut off access – at least temporarily – to government pandemic, public health and emergency services, sparking outrage.
Facebook’s partnership is a major victory in Australia’s efforts to make two major gateways to the Internet, Google and Facebook, pay for the journalism they use – a showdown that governments and tech companies around the world have been watching closely . Google had also threatened to remove its search features from Australia over the proposed law, but that threat has faded.
“There is no doubt that Australia has been a proxy battle for the world,” said treasurer Josh Frydenberg.
“Facebook and Google have not hidden the fact that they know the eyes of the world are on Australia, and so they have tried to get some code here that is workable,” he added, referring to the bill, the news media . Negotiation code.
In fact, this week Microsoft and four European publisher groups announced they would work together to push for Australian-style rules for news payments from technical platforms.
The legislation was intended to curb Facebook and Google’s over-negotiating position in their negotiations with Australian news providers. The digital giants would not be able to abuse their positions by paying news companies for their journalism. Instead, in the event of a stalemate, an arbitration panel would make a binding decision on a winning bid.
Frydenberg and Facebook confirmed that the two sides agreed to changes to the proposed legislation. The changes would give digital platforms a month’s notice before they are formally designated under the code. That would give those affected more time to reach agreements before being forced into binding arbitration arrangements.
A statement Tuesday from Campbell Brown, Facebook’s vice president for news partnerships, added that the deal allows the company to choose which publishers it will support, including small and local publishers.
“We will be restoring news on Facebook in Australia in the coming days. Going forward, the government has clarified that we will retain the ability to decide whether news appears on Facebook so that we are not automatically subject to forced negotiations, ”said Brown.
Frydenberg described the agreed changes as “clarifications” of the government’s intent. He said his negotiations with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg were “difficult”.
A lobby group of European publishers working with Microsoft said the deal shows that such legislation is possible – and not just in Australia.
“The latest turn proves that regulation works,” said Angela Mills Wade, executive director of the European Publishers Council. “Regulators around the world will be reassured that they can continue to draw inspiration from the Australian government’s determination to withstand unacceptable threats from powerful commercial gatekeepers.”
Facebook said it would now negotiate deals with Australian publishers.
“We are pleased that the Australian Government has agreed to a number of changes and warranties that address our main concerns about allowing commercial deals that recognize the value our platform provides to publishers in relation to the value we receive from them said William, Facebook’s regional director. Easton said.
“As a result of these changes, we can now work on our investment in public interest journalism and restore Facebook news to Australians in the coming days,” Easton added.
Google, meanwhile, has signed Australia’s largest media companies to content licensing deals through its News Showcase. The platform says it has struck deals with more than 50 Australian titles and more than 500 publishers worldwide using the model, which launched in October.
Peter Lewis, director of the Center for Responsible Technology, a think tank at the Australia Institute, said in a statement that the “changes keep the integrity of the media code intact.”
However, others took a more skeptical stance. Jeff Jarvis, a journalism expert from the City University of New York, said media mogul Rupert Murdoch, who owns most of Australia’s major newspapers through his US-based News Corp., is the top winner, while smaller titles and new media startups would suffer the most. .
Jarvis said Murdoch’s media empire was the driving force behind Australian law, which he says includes a requirement for media companies to earn at least 150,000 Australian dollars ($ 119,000) in revenue to be eligible.
“So a start-up that has no revenue has no real story,” Jarvis said, adding that even if Facebook and Google open payment conversations with smaller companies, “clearly a smaller player has less leverage than a larger player than a News Corp. . “
Associated Press writer Kelvin Chan contributed to this report from London.