Traditional Media vs the Tech Giants - Who Owns the Content?

Facebook has decided to block both Australian users & media companies from sharing links to news articles & related content on its main social network, following the country’s proposed landmark regulatory measure that would force companies like Google & Facebook to pay Australian news organisations for using their content.

Since April 2020, Australian treasurer Josh Frydenberg has been pushing for a News Media Bargaining Code to make Google & Facebook pay for news content.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) pointed out that media organisations needed “fair payment for news content”.

They argued that Google and Facebook profited off news media by repurposing their articles on their own platforms, which in turn led to advertising revenue.

“It’s only fair that those that generate content get paid for it,” Frydenberg said.

In July, recommendations were made and on December 9th 2020, the Treasury Laws Amendment (News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code) Bill 2020, was introduced to parliament.

The tech giants were opposed to the legislation & at first pushed back. But while Google has since decided to make multi-million dollar deals with organisations like Nine & Seven West Media, Facebook has decided it's not worth it for them as news content was "minimal", & made up about 4% of what people saw in their newsfeed - plus last year Facebook generated approximately 5.1 billion free referrals to Australian publishers worth an estimated AU$407 million.

These changes mean Australian publishers are restricted from sharing or posting any content on Facebook Pages. International publishers can continue to publish news content on Facebook, but links & posts can’t be viewed or shared by Australian audiences, & Aussie users can't view or share Australian or international news content on Facebook or content from Australian & international news pages.

 

What do you think of these changes? This is a huge development in the relationship between traditional & digital media, & it's going to be very interesting to see how this continues to evolve!