Australia aims to tax tech giants unless they pay news outlets
> Sydney (AFP) – Australia unveiled draft laws on Tuesday that would tax tech giants Meta, Google and TikTok unless they voluntarily strike deals to pay local outlets for news.
> Traditional media companies around the world are in a battle for survival as readers increasingly consume their news on social media.
>
>Australia wants big tech companies to compensate local publishers for sharing articles that drive traffic on their platforms.
>
>Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said tech giants Meta, Google and TikTok would be given a chance to strike content deals with local news publishers.
>
>If they refused, they faced a compulsory levy that amounted to 2.25 percent of their Australian revenue, he said.
>
>"Large digital platforms cannot avoid their obligations under the news media bargaining code," Albanese told reporters.
>
>"At this point the three organisations are Meta, Google and TikTok."
>
>The changes aim to close a loophole under a previous media law which allowed organisations to avoid a levy if they removed news from their platforms.
>
>The three firms were singled out based on a combination of their Australian revenues and large numbers of domestic users.
>
>The draft laws have been designed to stop the tech giants from simply stripping news from their platforms -- something Meta and Google have done in the past.
>
>"What we are encouraging is for them to sit down with news organisations and get these deals done," Albanese said.
>
>When Canberra mooted similar laws in 2024, Facebook parent Meta announced that Australian users would no longer be able to access the "news" tab.
>
>Meta had previously announced it would not renew content deals with news publishers in the United States, Britain, France and Germany.
...
> Traditional media companies around the world are in a battle for survival as readers increasingly consume their news on social media.
>
>Australia wants big tech companies to compensate local publishers for sharing articles that drive traffic on their platforms.
>
>Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said tech giants Meta, Google and TikTok would be given a chance to strike content deals with local news publishers.
>
>If they refused, they faced a compulsory levy that amounted to 2.25 percent of their Australian revenue, he said.
>
>"Large digital platforms cannot avoid their obligations under the news media bargaining code," Albanese told reporters.
>
>"At this point the three organisations are Meta, Google and TikTok."
>
>The changes aim to close a loophole under a previous media law which allowed organisations to avoid a levy if they removed news from their platforms.
>
>The three firms were singled out based on a combination of their Australian revenues and large numbers of domestic users.
>
>The draft laws have been designed to stop the tech giants from simply stripping news from their platforms -- something Meta and Google have done in the past.
>
>"What we are encouraging is for them to sit down with news organisations and get these deals done," Albanese said.
>
>When Canberra mooted similar laws in 2024, Facebook parent Meta announced that Australian users would no longer be able to access the "news" tab.
>
>Meta had previously announced it would not renew content deals with news publishers in the United States, Britain, France and Germany.
...