Australia asks Facebook, Google to share revenue generated from news

In a new move, the Australian government has ordered Facebook and Alphabet’s Google to share revenue generated from news articles. This, the government said, was in line with growing global regulatory and political pushback against the digital giants.

The new order says the two companies will have to negotiate with traditional media on remuneration in good faith, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said Friday. If no agreement is reached, there will be a binding arbitration process and penalties for breaching the code of up to A$10 million ($7 million) or 10 percent of local revenue.

The move aims to correct a serious power imbalance between two of the world’s most profitable companies and the local media industry that is running into loss in advertising revenue

According to the Australian government, the move aims to correct a serious power imbalance between two of the world’s most profitable companies and the local media industry that is running into loss in advertising revenue which goes to the digital platforms.

The move is in tune with measures elsewhere in the world, including in France where the antitrust regulator in April ordered Google to pay media companies to display snippets of articles.