Australia passes law to levy tech giants that fail to pay for local news
Australia has enacted legislation requiring major tech companies like Google, Meta, and TikTok to pay levies if they fail to secure commercial deals with local news publishers. Platforms can avoid the tax by reaching agreements with at least eight publishers, with incentives provided for supporting small and medium-sized outlets.
Why it matters
This law represents a significant global shift in how governments force tech giants to subsidize local journalism, potentially setting a precedent for other nations regulating digital platform revenue.
Australia passed legislation on Thursday that will force tech giants to pay millions of dollars in levies if they fail to strike commercial deals with local media outlets for news on their platforms.
The News Bargaining Incentive taxes the companies 2.5% on their advertising revenues unless they strike agreements. Proceeds from the scheme would be directed to local Australian news outlets, whose content helps drive user engagement and advertising revenue on the tech firms’ platforms.
The levy applies to Meta, Alphabet’s Google, TikTok and Microsoft’s LinkedIn, covering companies with a “significant” social media or search service in Australia, and local advertising revenue exceeding A$250 million ($178 million). Platforms can avoid the charge by reaching agreements with at least eight different publishers by the end of their reporting period. The value of those deals would be offset against their levy liability.
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