Australia Passes Law to Levy Google, Meta, TikTok Over Unpaid Local News

Australia has passed a new law that could force major technology companies to pay millions of dollars to support local journalism if they fail to reach commercial agreements with Australian news publishers.

The legislation, known as the News Bargaining Incentive, was passed by Parliament on Thursday, August 20, in the latest move by the Australian government to address the growing financial pressure on the country’s news industry.

Under the new framework, major digital platforms including Google, Meta, TikTok and Microsoft’s LinkedIn will be required to strike commercial deals with Australian news organisations or face a levy on their Australian digital advertising revenue.

The levy is set at 2.5 per cent of qualifying Australian digital advertising revenue for companies that fail to meet the requirements. The scheme applies to large platforms generating more than A$250 million in Australian advertising revenue.

To avoid the levy, affected platforms must reach commercial agreements with at least eight Australian news publishers within the relevant financial reporting period.

The government says the arrangement is designed to encourage direct commercial negotiations rather than simply impose a tax on technology companies. Money collected through the levy will be channelled back to Australian news organisations to support local journalism.

The legislation also provides incentives for platforms that sign agreements with publishers. Deals involving large news organisations receive a 150 per cent credit, while agreements with small and medium-sized publishers receive a 200 per cent offset, although the amount that can be offset through an individual deal is capped.

The move builds on Australia’s earlier attempt to rebalance the relationship between technology platforms and news organisations through its News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code, which was introduced to address what regulators described as an imbalance in bargaining power between digital platforms and news businesses.

The government argues that platforms benefit from the news content produced by publishers because journalism helps attract users and engagement, which in turn can generate advertising revenue.

Australian authorities have therefore increasingly sought ways to ensure that news organisations receive financial value from the digital platforms that distribute or display their contents.

The policy has, however, faced resistance from some technology companies.

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, previously described the government’s proposal as unfair and argued that the legislation would not necessarily create a more sustainable news industry.

The passage of the law nevertheless marks another significant intervention by Australia in the global debate over how technology giants should compensate news organisations for the use and distribution of journalism online.

The legislation also comes as news publishers around the world continue to grapple with declining traditional advertising revenues, competition from digital platforms and the growing influence of technology companies over how audiences discover news.

Australia’s latest move could consequently become a model watched closely by other countries considering similar measures to force Big Tech to contribute more directly to the sustainability of local journalism.