This appeared last week:
‘Not the Australian way’: Anthony Albanese blasts Meta
By Sophie Elsworth Media Writer
And James Madden Media Editor
3:37PM March 1, 2024
Anthony Albanese has blasted tech giant Meta’s abandoning of deals to pay for the news content it uses and says action will be taken, as he labelled the owner of Facebook’s moves as “unfair” and “not the Australian way”.
Meta released a statement on Friday afternoon, declaring that in early April it will “deprecate” Facebook’s dedicated news tab in Australia – meaning it will no longer support the publishers that provide the news content featured on the social media platform.
In other words, Meta will not be removing news content from Facebook – it just won’t be paying for it.
Anthony Albanese has called out Meta's decision to abandon its deals with publishers that see it pay for news…
As he considers massive fines against Meta, the Prime Minister told The Australian that Meta’s plans were “simply untenable” and left the door open to reinvesting the revenue from any fines in local publishers hit by the tech giant’s decision.
“We’re very concerned with this announcement ... “It is absolutely critical that media is able to function and be properly funded,” Mr Albanese said in Melbourne.
“We will consider what options we have available and we will talk to the media companies as well.
“The idea that one company can profit from others’ investment, not just investment in capital but investment in people, investment in journalism is unfair. That’s not the Australian way.”
News Corp Australasia executive chairman Michael Miller welcomed the government’s support for the media industry and accused Meta of attempting to mislead Australians.
“Meta is using its immense market power to refuse to negotiate, and the government is right to explore every option for how the Media Bargaining Code’s powers can be used.
“Meta is attempting to mislead Australians by saying its decision is about the closure of its news tab product, however the vast majority of news on facebook and Meta is and will continue to be consumed outside this product.
“Meta’s decision will directly impact the viability of Australia’s many small and regional publishers and this is a pressing issue for the government to confront.
“We will work in any way we can to assist the processes the government is putting in place.”
In 2021, Meta signed a raft of three-year deals with Australian publishers under the news media bargaining code, ensuring the company paid for the third party news content it published on Facebook.
But with the deals set to expire later this year, Meta has confirmed that it would not be renewing the arrangements which compensate news publishers for their work.
The move has serious ramifications for the Australian news industry, both for large and small publishers alike, given that Meta draws significant advertising revenue off the back of the publishers’ work, and those publishers will no longer be compensated by Meta for that content.
Senior media executives at Australian media outlets were told of Meta’s move this morning.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is expected to respond to the shock development later today.
The federal government will come under pressure to “designate” Meta under the terms of the news media bargaining code, which would force them into arbitration for content payments, with the threat of massive fines to those unwilling to compensate news outlets.
In a joint statement on Thursday afternoon, Communications Minister Michelle Rowland and Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones (who oversees the code) said: “Meta’s decision to no longer pay for news content in a number of jurisdictions represents a dereliction of its commitment to the sustainability of Australian news media.
“The government has made its expectations clear.
“The decision removes a significant source of revenue for Australian news media businesses. Australian news publishers deserve fair compensation for the content they provide.
“The Australian government is committed to the News Media Bargaining Code and is seeking advice from Treasury and the ACCC on next steps.”
Meta’s statement read in part: “This is part of an ongoing effort to better align our investments to our products and services people value the most,” Meta’s statement read.
“The number of people using Facebook News in Australia and the U.S. has dropped by over 80 per cent last year.
“We know that people don’t come to Facebook for news and political content — they come to connect with people and discover new opportunities, passions and interests.”
Link is here:
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/media/meta-abandons-news-content-deals/news-story/5aef9b28697e26fb6ec8ddd6b2e84599
I must say I could not care less what Facebook does with news – or with anything else for that matter.
If I want news here in OZ there are plenty of reliable sources which can be accessed for free so really who cares? Surely our news media can stand on their own two feet with out getting payments from Meta? If they can't then it seems to me they need to re-think just what they are about and the public needs to wonder why it is only advertising on Facebook that is funding our news services (ABC excluded)
It seems to me there are some hard questions that need answering here if our local media are all so dependent on revenue from Facebook users? On the other side it is clear that having news on Facebook drives users and so advertising and revenue. Apparently having news is worth $50M to Facebook for the users it attracts.....
I also wonder why Mr Albansese thinks this is such an issue. Why would our PM be concerned about Facebook revenue and services?
Use Facebook - if you must – to connect - and use the ABC, Nine or News Corp for news and current affairs.
Am I missing something here?
David.
p.s. There is a very useful perspective here for those who have access:
D.
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