- Kyle Chua
New Zealand Proposes Law Requiring Google, Facebook Pay Local Media For News
The New Zealand government wants to require Big Tech, which includes Alphabet Inc's Google and Meta's Facebook, to pay for news articles that they use.
According to Reuters, the proposed legislation would be modelled after similar laws in Australia and Canada in a bid to help struggling media organisations that might have seen their advertising revenues drop, with audiences shifting to online platforms. Broadcasting Minister Willie Jackson hopes it would push internet companies to strike deals with the local media, helping support and sustain the industry.
"New Zealand news media, particularly small regional and community newspapers, are struggling to remain financially viable as more advertising moves online," said Mr Jackson. "It is critical that those benefiting from their news content actually pay for it."
He said the government would likely be willing to give internet companies three to six months to negotiate deals before the mandatory mediation process begins.
"We’ve probably lost 50% of journalists in the last 10 years. We’ve got to give hope to the small players out there. I’m proud to bring forward this legislation to support them," added Mr Jackson.
The legislation is slated to go to a vote in parliament where the governing Labour Party's majority is expected to pass it.
Stuff, NZME and MediaWorks, among other local media organisations benefiting from the legislation, have been very supportive of it. Stuff CEO Sinead Boucher called it a strong move that considers the “significant power imbalance between publishers and platforms".
"We want a deal for the whole industry – publishers large and small – that represents a fair exchange for the value the platforms get out of using our content to allow us to keep investing and developing high-quality New Zealand journalism," she said.
Stuff reported that it has yet to land a fair deal with Google and Meta. NZME, on the other hand, already reached an agreement earlier this year.
Australia passed a law in 2021 obligating Google and Meta to strike deals that would pay media outlets for news content on their respective platforms. If an agreement isn't reached, the government can appoint an arbitrator to decide how much the internet companies must pay to continue being supplied with content from local publishers. The Australian government said in a review last week that the law has been successful so far, with more than 30 deals already being struck.
The New Zealand government wants to require Big Tech, which includes Alphabet Inc's Google and Meta's Facebook, to pay for news articles that they use.
The legislation would be modelled after similar laws in Australia and Canada, with the expectation of pushing internet companies to strike deals with the local media, helping support and sustain the industry.
It is slated to go to a vote in parliament where the governing Labour Party's majority is expected to pass it.