Facebook’s parent company, Meta, announced on Friday that it would stop paying Australian media for their information, triggering the anger of the government which believes that the group is thus “failing” in its commitments.
Meta, which has removed news content from its platform in many countries, said it would remove the Facebook News tab in Australia and not renew its content deals with media outlets worth hundreds of millions of dollars. dollars.
“People don’t come to Facebook for news and political content,” the company explained to justify the removal of Facebook News, a tab providing access to online articles from major media outlets.
The decision was expected, but is expected to be a blow to Australian media already struggling to stay afloat.
Meta has already announced that it will not renew its news content supply agreements with media outlets in the United States, Britain, France and Germany.
The social media giant had been pushed by governments to agree to pay media outlets for informational content in order to create more favorable market conditions for struggling media companies.
Media outlets around the world have converted to online publications but are struggling to monetize their content in the face of digital giants like Google and Facebook, which have taken over the majority of online advertising revenue.
Three years ago, Meta’s promise to pay Australian media prompted the government to water down a new law governing online platforms and their relationships with the media.
Communications Minister Michelle Rowland on Friday expressed anger at Meta’s announcement and suggested retaliation.
“Meta’s decision to no longer pay for news content in a number of jurisdictions represents a failure in its commitment to the viability of Australian media,” Ms Rowland said.
“This decision removes an important source of revenue for Australian media companies. Australian news publishers deserve fair compensation for the content they provide,” she added.
The government will “study all available options” to resolve the problem. Canberra is “committed to promoting a strong, sustainable and diverse media sector given its vital importance to our democracy and social cohesion,” she said.