Oz passes landmark law requiring tech firms to pay for news
AUSTRALIA’S parliament passed landmark legislation on February 25 requiring global digital giants to pay for local news content, in a move closely watched around the world.
The law passed easily after a lastgasp deal that watered down binding rules Facebook and Google had fiercely opposed in return for the tech giants agreeing to pay local media companies.
The new law paves the way for Google and Facebook to invest tens of millions of dollars in local content deals, and could prove a model for resolving the firms’ tussles with regulators worldwide.
Google will now pay for news content that appears on its “Showcase” product and Facebook is expected to pay providers who appear on its “News” product, which is to be rolled out in Australia later this year.
Regulators had accused the companies, who dominate online advertising, of draining cash away from traditional news organisations while using their content for free.
Big tech firms had fiercely opposed the legislation from the outset, fearing it would threaten their business models.
In particular, the companies objected to rules that made negotiations with media companies mandatory and gave an independent Australian arbiter the right to impose a monetary settlement.
That prospect was dramatically reduced by last-minute government amendments.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said in a statement: “Importantly, the code encourages parties to undertake commercial negotiations outside the code and the government is pleased to see progress by both Google and more recently Facebook in reaching commercial arrangements with Australian news media businesses.”
Google was also keen to avoid creating a precedent that platforms should pay anyone for links, something that could make their flagship search engine unworkable.
Facebook – which is much less reliant on news content – had initially said being forced to pay for news was simply not worth it and shut down access to news content for its Australian users.
‘Public interest journalism’
The government said the law, called the News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code, would ensure that news businesses “are fairly remunerated for the content they generate, helping to sustain public interest journalism in Australia”.
Facebook and Google now have an additional two months to reach further agreements that would stave off binding arbitration.
Google has already brokered deals worth millions of dollars with local media companies, including the two largest – Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp and Nine Entertainment.
Facebook on February 23 lifted a site-wide ban on Australian news, introduced in protest at the law, and announced its first proposed deal with Australian media company Seven West.
Both Facebook and Google have said they will invest around $1 billion each in news around the world over the next three years.
Critics of the law say it punishes innovative companies and amounts to a money-grab by struggling – but politically connected – traditional media.
Tech insiders see the legislation as driven, in particular, by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, which dominates the local media landscape and has close ties with Australia’s conservative government.
Nick Clegg, head of global affairs, on February 25 said the original draft of the law would have forced Facebook to pay “potentially unlimited amounts of money to multinational media conglomerates under an arbitration system that deliberately misdescribes the relationship between publishers and Facebook”.
Thousands of journalism jobs and scores of news outlets have been lost in Australia alone over the past decade as the sector watched advertising revenue flow to the digital players.
For every A$100 (US$80) spent by Australian advertisers today, A$49 goes to Google and A$24 to Facebook, according to the country’s competition watchdog.
THE Thai military has announced a major overhaul of its forces aimed at cutting the number of high-ranking officers.
Thailand has a notoriously top-heavy military, with about 1,700 generals – or one general for every 212 soldiers, according to Professor Paul Chambers, a military affairs expert at Naresuan University.
On February 24, the Royal Thai Armed Forces (RTAF) announced that unnecessary units will be removed, while the setting up of new units under major generals, rear admirals, air vice marshals and other high-ranking officers will be suspended.
An RTAF spokesperson said the changes stemmed from high-level talks.
Some units will be assigned to cover more duties, while unnecessary units will be scrapped, he added.
Meanwhile, quotas for some posts will be reduced as postholders resign, he said.
The new guidelines are expected to cut the number of high-ranking officers – major generals, rear admirals, and air vice-marshals – by five to 10 per cent. The overhaul will start from this April.
FOUR-time major champion Rory McIlroy said on Wednesday that questions over Tiger Woods’s golfing future are immaterial as the superstar fights to recover from serious leg injuries sustained in a car crash.
“At this stage I think everyone should just be grateful that he’s here, that he’s alive, that his kids haven’t lost their dad,” Northern Ireland’s McIlroy told reporters at the World Golf Championships Workday Championship at Concession Golf Club in Bradenton, Florida.
“That’s the most important thing. Golf is so far from the equation right now, it’s not even on the map at this point.”
McIlroy echoed the thoughts of US PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan, who said his energies would be devoted to supporting Woods in whatever way possible.
“Well, I think that the only thing that really matters now is his well-being,” Monahan said. “His recovery, his family, the level of support that we provide to him.
“Listen, when Tiger wants to talk about golf, we’ll talk about golf,” added Monahan, after he was asked if it was “too soon” to think about the PGA Tour without Woods, whose 82 PGA Tour titles include 15 major championships.
“When you’re going to overcome what he needs to overcome, I think the love of all of our players and everybody out here, it’s going to come forward in a big way and across the entire sporting world,” he said.
Woods was recovering in hospital in Los Angeles on Wednesday after surgery for “significant orthopedic injuries” to his lower right leg and ankle.
This included the insertion of a rod into his shin bone and the use of screws and pins to stabilize his foot and ankle, doctors said.
Law enforcement officials who responded to the crash in a Los Angeles suburb said Woods was lucky to survive when his SUV left the steep, curving road, rolling over several times.
Monahan recalled his shock at being notified by telephone of the crash and the period of uncertainty as to whether Woods’s injuries were lifethreatening.
“You’re thinking a lot of different things and some of them are pretty scary to think about,” Monahan said.
World number four Xander Schauffele described the “somber” mood on the practice green on Tuesday and said it was still unusually “quiet” on the course on Wednesday.
“There’s so much speculation right now, and I hate speculating, but I would really hate to see that if he wouldn’t be able to play golf again,” Schauffele said.
But even if that’s the case, world number two Jon Rahm noted that Woods’s legacy is secure.
“I don’t necessarily need to see him on a golf course again,” Rahm said. “I would love to, but I just hope he can live a normal life from here on.
“He’s given everything to this game, he’s done so much for us, and every day that we’re all out here is going to be a memory of Tiger Woods.
“Luckily he’s got so much impact in this world that even if he doesn’t hit a golf shot, with his foundation and many other works, he’s still able to make a great impact in this world.”