Australians may see news removed from their Facebook and Instagram feeds if a new legislation proposed by the Australian Competitor and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is passed.
“Assuming this draft code becomes law, we will reluctantly stop allowing publishers and people in Australia from sharing local and international news on Facebook and Instagram,” said Will Easton, Managing Director, Facebook Australia & New Zealand, in a statement shared on August 31.
The ACCC’s draft code addresses bargaining power imbalances between Australian news businesses and Google and Facebook, with the intention of ensuring fair payment for content included on Google services.
Google published an open letter, strongly opposing the ACCC’s proposed legislation, and arguing its free services in Australia may be under threat.
The ACCC released a response to the open letter, arguing it contained misinformation.
“The draft code will allow Australian news businesses to negotiate for fair payment for their journalists’ work that is included on Google services. This will address a significant bargaining power imbalance between Australian news media businesses and Google and Facebook,” stated the ACCC.
Easton is contending the solution proposed by the ACCC, stating it is “counterproductive” in its goal of supporting struggling news organisations.
“The proposed law is unprecedented in its reach and seeks to regulate every aspect of how tech companies do business with news publishers,” he writes.
“Most perplexing, it would force Facebook to pay news organisations for content that the publishers voluntarily place on our platforms and at a price that ignores the financial value we bring publishers.”
Easton states the ACCC is presuming Facebook “benefits most in relationship with publishers, when in fact the reverse is true.”
He goes on to outline that news organisations, both nationally and internationally, post news on Facebook due to the benefits of increased readership via social media.
“Over the first five months of 2020 we sent 2.3 billion clicks from Facebook’s News Feed back to Australian news websites at no charge – additional traffic worth an estimated $200 million AUD to Australian publishers,” states Easton.
“Instead, we are left with a choice of either removing news entirely or accepting a system that lets publishers charge us for as much content as they want at a price with no clear limits. Unfortunately, no business can operate that way.
“Facebook products and services in Australia that allow family and friends to connect will not be impacted by this decision. Our global commitment to quality news around the world will not change either. And we will continue to work with governments and regulators who rightly hold our feet to the fire. But successful regulation, like the best journalism, will be grounded in and built on facts. In this instance, it is not.”
More to come.
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