Facebook threatens Australia of 'reluctantly stopping' publishers from posting news

American social media conglomerate corporation, Facebook has threatened Australian regulators of not letting users post news content in the country as it prepares for a new law that would force the social network to pay the publishers for their articles. The regulators in Australia want tech giants including Facebook and Google to pay for the content that is reposted from the news outlets. While Google last month warned its users that its search services could be “dramatically worse” as the result of the law (if passed), Facebook has said that the draft of new regulation “ misunderstands the dynamics of the internet”.

In a blog published by on August 31 by Will Easton, Managing Director, Facebook Australia & New Zealand said that new legislation will cause “damage” to the news organisations that the government is hoping to protect. Noting that it is “not the first choice” of the US-based company, Easton said that Facebook will “reluctantly stop”  permitting the publishers and also the people in Australia from posting local as well as international news even on Instagram.

Will Easton wrote, “Assuming this draft code becomes law, we will reluctantly stop allowing publishers and people in Australia from sharing local and international news on Facebook and Instagram. This is not our first choice – it is our last. But it is the only way to protect against an outcome that defies logic and will hurt, not help, the long-term vibrancy of Australia’s news and media sector.”

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Facebook ‘shares’ goal of Australian govt

Will Easton has also that the social network “shares” the goal of the Australian government about extending support for the struggling news organisations such as local newspapers. However, Easton elaborated that the solution proposed by the regulators is “counterproductive” to the aim. Further condemning the legislation, Managing Director, Facebook Australia & New Zealand said that it is “unprecedented” in reach and seeks to regulate all aspects of tech companies’ way of business. 

He wrote, “We share the Australian Government’s goal of supporting struggling news organisations, particularly local newspapers, and have engaged extensively with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission that has led the effort."

"But its solution is counterproductive to that goal. The proposed law is unprecedented in its reach and seeks to regulate every aspect of how tech companies do business with news publishers,” he added.

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