Friends again? Facebook to lift Australia ban
SYDNEY:Facebook announced on Tuesday that it would lift a ban on Australians viewing and sharing news on its platform after it struck a deal with the government on proposed legislation that would make digital giants pay for journalism.
The company caused alarm with its sudden decision last week to block news on its website across Australia after the House of Representatives passed the draft law.
Facebook’s cooperation is a major victory in Australia’s efforts to make two major gateways to the internet, Google and Facebook, pay for the journalism that they use — a faceoff watched closely world over. Google also had threatened to remove its search functions from Australia, but that threat has faded.
“There is no doubt that Australia has been a proxy battle for the world,” Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said. “Facebook and Google have not hidden the fact that they know that the eyes of the world are on Australia, and that is why they have sought to get a code here that is workable,” he added, referring to the bill, the News Media Bargaining Code. The legislation was designed to curb the outsized bargaining power of Facebook and Google. The digital giants would not be able to abuse their positions by making take-it-orleave-it payment offers. Instead, in the case of a standoff, an arbitration panel would make a binding decision.
Frydenberg and Facebook confirmed the two sides agreed to amendments to the legislation. The changes would give digital platforms one month’s notice before they are formally designated under the code. That would give those involved more time to broker agreements.
Facebook also announced its first proposed deal with an Australian company, Seven West. “We’re restoring news on Facebook in Australia in the coming days. Going forward, the government has clarified we will retain the ability to decide if news appears on Facebook so that we won’t automatically be subject to a forced negotiation,” Campbell Brown, Facebook’s V-P for news partnerships, said.