SINGAPORE – Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Thursday that he had a “constructive meeting” with Google chief Sundar Pichai after the tech giant threatened to pull its search engine out of the country over a possible new law.
Essentially, Australia wants internet giants Facebook and Google, a subsidiary of Alphabet, to pay for news.
The government submitted a media bill to parliament in December. If the new media bargaining code is passed, the digital platforms will have to pay local media and publishers to link their content in news feeds or search results. If the parties are unable to reach an agreement, a panel appointed by the government will decide on the price.
“I thought it was a constructive meeting,” Morrison told reporters on Thursday, according to a transcript from a press conference posted by his office.
“I have been able to send them the best possible signals that should give them great encouragement to get involved in the process and close the arrangements we would like them to make with the various news media organizations in Australia,” said he.
Morrison said Google raised specific aspects of the media negotiation code during the call and touched on discussions about the company’s ability to continue to provide services in Australia.
“At the end of the day, they understand that Australia sets the rules for how these things work. And I was very clear about how I saw this work out,” Morrison said without elaboration.
Google did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.