Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Why has Facebook blocked news in Australia and what does it mean for the rest of the world?

Why has Facebook blocked news in Australia and what does it mean for the rest of the world?

The social media giant has blocked people in Australia from viewing and sharing news on its platform in a row over money.

Facebook has blocked Australians from accessing and sharing news in a fight over internet platforms paying media organisations for content.

Sky News looks into why this has happened and why it matters for the rest of the world.

What has happened and why?

Australians woke up on Thursday to discover they could not access news on their Facebook accounts and people around the world could not post or share links from Australian publications.

Commercial and government communication pages, community support groups, charities and news from emergency services were also inaccessible.

Australian Facebook users are getting this message when they try to share news stories


The US-based social media giant made the move after the Australian House of Representatives approved a law to compel internet companies to pay news organisations.

Facebook said the law, which needs to be passed by the Senate, "fundamentally misunderstands the relationship between our platform and publishers who use it".

Powerful tech companies fear the law could set an expensive precedent for other countries as governments try to catch up with the fast-changing digital world.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison used his Facebook page to react, saying: "Facebook's actions to unfriend Australia today, cutting off essential information services on health and emergency services, were as arrogant as they were disappointing."

Facebook accounts for 23% of Australian online advertising revenue while Google accounts for 53%, according to the government's treasurer, Josh Frydenberg.

Why is Australia trying to get internet companies to pay news organisations?


For two decades, global news outlets have complained internet companies are getting rich at their expense by selling advertising linked to their reports without sharing revenue.

The block also impacted Sky News's Facebook page in the UK


The Australian government wants to redress that balance in the hope more money can go to a news industry that is seeing revenue shrink and, in some cases, being forced to cut coverage.

Canberra's competition regulator tried to negotiate a voluntary payment plan with Google but this failed.

The new proposal was then brought forward which would create a committee to make binding decisions on the price of news reports to help give publishers more negotiating leverage with the internet giants.

Has Google agreed to the plan?


The internet tech giant had threatened to retaliate but announced deals in Australia with Rupert Murdoch's News Corp and Seven West Media, while the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Nine Entertainment are in negotiations.

No financial details were released but this means news companies now have a new revenue stream.

News Corp, which owns Sky News in Australia - separate from Sky News UK - said it would receive "significant payments" from Google under a three-year agreement which also covers its non-Australian publications such as the New York Post, and the Times and the Sun in the UK.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation's Facebook page was showing without any of its news posts


Does Google's deal translate to more coverage for readers, viewers and listeners?


That remains unclear.

Australia's journalists' union is calling on media companies to make sure online revenue goes into newsgathering "not the boardroom".

Will other countries follow Australia?


The proposed law is the first of its kind, but other countries have been pressuring Google, Facebook and other internet companies to pay news outlets and other publishers for material.

In France, Google had to negotiate with publishers after a court last year upheld an order saying agreements to pay were required by a 2019 European Union copyright directive.

In contrast to the ban, Facebook has launched a News tab in the UK


France is the first government to enforce the rules, but the decision suggests other countries in the 27-nation bloc will enforce the same requirements.

A group of French publishers and Google announced a framework agreement for the search engine to negotiate licensing deals with individual publishers.

Several outlets have deals with Google, including Le Monde newspaper and weekly magazine l'Obs.

Facebook launched a Facebook News tab in the UK after completing deals with many of the country's major news providers, including Sky News, the Financial Times, and The Guardian.

Google shut down its news website in Spain after a 2014 law required it to pay publishers.

Facebook 'a school yard bully' in Australia


And in 2020, Facebook said it would pay US news organisations, including USA Today, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post for headlines. No financial details were released.

Following the Google deal, Mr Frydenberg said he was convinced the platforms "do want to enter into these commercial arrangements".

"It's a massive step forward we have seen this week," he said.

"But if this was easy, every other country in the world would have done it already. But they haven't."

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
US Appeals Court Rules Against Most Trump-Era Tariffs
Germany’s Auto Industry Sheds 51,500 Jobs in First Half of 2025 Amid Deepening Crisis
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz: “The Current Welfare State Can No Longer Be Financed”
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
Wizz Air passengers screamed as storm-battered flight diverts to Bologna
European postal services halt U.S. deliveries after Trump imposes new tariffs
Urban explorer finds abandoned luxury restaurant left to decay
Fidesz leader labels Péter Magyar a ‘bluffer’ amid escalating political spat
French rope park operator arrested for denying entry to Israeli children
Újpest thrashes Zalaegerszeg 4-1 to secure first win in five matches
Profit-margin cap costs retailers 13 billion forints a month, warns trade group
Curiosity rover finds coral-like rock on Mars hinting at watery past
U.S. green policy rollback drives investors to Europe’s sustainable finance market
Special funerals rise in Hungary: boat, aerial and forest burials gain popularity
Hungary’s Kiskunság region turning into semi-desert after extreme drought
Kopasz Bálint wins world kayak 1000 m title in Milan, making him triple world champion
Budapest’s Keleti railway station to close for four weeks for track overhaul
Balaton could be unfit for swimming by 2035 and dry by 2050, scientists warn
Leaked guidelines show Meta’s AI allowed flirty and racist interactions with children
Filming of ‘Emily in Paris’ halted after assistant director dies on set
Filipino guest workers sue after Hungary moves to deport them for pregnancy
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
A monster hit and a billion-dollar toy empire
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
Canada: Nurse Suspended and Fined 93 Thousand Dollars After Stating the World’s Most Well-Known Fact Since the Creation of Adam and Eve, That There Are Only Two Genders
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
U.S. Treasury Secretary Whitney Bessent Backs Stablecoins to Boost Treasury Demand
Spain to Declare Disaster Zones After Massive Wildfires
×