Facebook has threatened to block Australians from sharing news articles if lawmakers there approve a proposal to make it pay news outlets ...
Facebook has threatened to block Australians from sharing news articles if lawmakers there approve a proposal to make it pay news outlets for their content.
In a blog post dated Monday, the social-media titan indicated it will “reluctantly” stop users and publishers from sharing local and international news on Facebook and Instagram rather than negotiate fees with publishers.
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“This is not our first choice it is our last,” Will Easton, managing director for Facebook Australia and New Zealand, wrote in the post. “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.”
Tech giants like Facebook and Google have been criticized, including in the US, for contributing to the demise of journalism by using news content created by others to drive their own traffic and ad revenue. In the US, the Department of Justice has fielded complaints about companies like Google forcing struggling publishers into unfair agreements if they want their content promoted.
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