The Australian parliament on Thursday officially passed a landmark law that effectively forced tech titans to pay for news content following intense public opposition from Facebook and Google.
The first such measure ended its last hurdle when parliament passed a series of amendments to appease Facebook, which prevented Australian users from viewing or sharing news last week.
Australian lawmakers said the law that is slated to come into force will address the “bargaining power imbalance” between technology platforms and news publishers, although its final form gives Facebook and Google more leeway to negotiate.
“The code will ensure that media companies are fairly remunerated for the content they generate, which will help maintain public interest journalism in Australia,” Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and Communications Minister Paul said in a joint statement. Fletcher.
Officials pushed the law even after Facebook imposed a five-day news blackout in Australia, an unprecedented move that sparked widespread outrage.
Google had also threatened to shut down its search engine in Australia if the proposal became law, but the Silicon Valley giant ended up taking the more conciliatory approach of making deals with publishers, including News Corp., which owns The Post .
Facebook lifted its news block this week after reaching a compromise with Australian lawmakers on amendments to the law. A key change gave Frydenberg the discretion to decide that Facebook or Google do not need to be subject to the code if they are to make a “significant contribution to the sustainability of the Australian news industry”.
Companies will also have more time to negotiate with publishers before they are forced to make agreements through arbitration, a process in which a third party would decide how much they should pay for technology platforms.
“The Australian government has agreed to changes that mean fair negotiations are encouraged without the imperative threat of unpredictable and heavy arbitration,” Nick Clegg, Facebook’s vice president of global affairs, said in a blog post this week.
Rod Sims, chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, which originally drafted the law, said the version passed by lawmakers would meet its target, even if the technology giants take a long time to deal with it. the editors.
“[These] things take time, “Sims said.” Google and Facebook don’t have unlimited resources to talk to everyone. I think that has a long way to go. “
With publishing cables