Federal government slams Meta's decision to end media agreements
The company that owns Facebook says it'll stop paying Australian media for news content when their current deals expire. The tech giant meta has paid millions of dollars to Australian media companies, including the ABC. The government's slammed the move - but Meta says its customers don't come to its platform for news and political content.
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TVTranscript
00:00 The fight between the Australian media and tech giants is rebooting.
00:06 Now Facebook's owner Meta is no longer willing to pay for news.
00:11 We're not talking about some plucky little start-up here.
00:13 We're talking about one of the world's largest and most profitable companies.
00:18 Selfish, derelict and destructive.
00:22 Few Australian leaders had anything kind to say about the company today.
00:26 The government takes the view that this is a dereliction of its responsibility to Australia.
00:32 Meta has decided not to renew a deal it struck three years ago.
00:37 Back then, the government passed laws forcing big tech to pay for the use of news.
00:41 But today, in a statement, Meta said people don't come to Facebook for news and political
00:46 content.
00:48 The decision could cost news outlets millions.
00:51 And even though we know that these commercial deals are confidential, we are aware of reports
00:57 that it's some $200 million that will be impacted here.
01:01 There are even concerns it might switch off the lights for some smaller players.
01:05 For some it could be fatal that they lose this access to money.
01:09 Former ACCC chairman Rod Sims helped negotiate the code three years ago.
01:14 I think this is a very selfish decision by Meta and Facebook.
01:18 It means that they're not willing to pay for content that they benefit from.
01:22 We need the federal government not to blink here.
01:26 The very reason this code came into being was to ensure that the digital giants paid
01:33 their way.
01:34 The government has signalled it's unwilling to let this slide.
01:38 Nobody should be under any doubt about the government's resolve to ensure that we have
01:43 a viable media industry in this country.
01:46 It's seeking advice on its next steps, which could include compelling Facebook to the bargaining
01:51 table.
01:52 [BLANK_AUDIO]