Facebook has followed through on its threat to ban Australians sharing news on its platform in response to a proposed media bargaining code.
The social media giant said in a blog post on Thursday morning that the move was in response to the federal government’s proposed legislation to create a news media bargaining code.
“The proposed law fundamentally misunderstands the relationship between our platform and publishers who use it to share news content,” said William Easton, the Managing Director of Facebook Australia and New Zealand.
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“It has left us facing a stark choice: attempt to comply with a law that ignores the realities of this relationship, or stop allowing news content on our services in Australia. With a heavy heart, we are choosing the latter.”
Facebook’s restrictions have already come into effect.
“People and news organisations in Australia are now restricted from posting news links and sharing or viewing Australian and international news content on Facebook,” the company said.
Australian users and publishers will be restricted from viewing or sharing domestic and international news.
Overseas users also will be unable to access Australian news content.
Facebook has also blocked important government information pages including the weather bureau, health departments and police agencies.
The social media giant claims it has been left with no choice.
“The proposed law fundamentally misunderstands the relationship between our platform and publishers who use it to share news content,” the company said in a statement on Thursday.
“It has left us facing a stark choice: attempt to comply with a law that ignores the realities of this relationship or stop allowing news content on our services in Australia.
“With a heavy heart, we are choosing the latter.”
Facebook’s threat
The move is not entirely unexpected.
Facebook first made the threat to ban news for Australians in August and repeated the ultimatum before a Senate inquiry in January.
Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said the government would not back down to Facebook after it restricted Australian access to news.
“Facebook needs to think very carefully about what this means for its reputation and standing,” Mr Fletcher said.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, who has proudly trumpeted the bargaining code throughout the week, has spoken to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg following the company’s decision.
“He raised a few remaining issues with the government’s news media bargaining code and we agreed to continue our conversation to try to find a pathway forward,” Mr Frydenberg said.
Labor frontbencher Mark Dreyfus is demanding the government resolve the dispute.
“Facebook is going to dramatically alter the feed that Australians get and restrict the flow of news to Australians, the flow of real public-interest journalism and real news to Australians on Facebook,” he said.
“The question is one for the government to answer instead of patting yourselves on the back. Tell Australians what’s going on with Facebook. It’s something that 18 million or so Australians are affected by.”
Facebook, Google in very different fights over media bargaining code
As Facebook restricts the sharing of news, Google is striking deals in Australia to pay for journalism.
News Corp has become the latest publisher to sign a lucrative agreement with Google.
The internet giant has already struck deals with Seven West Media and Nine Entertainment, and is in talks with public broadcasters ABC and SBS, as well as Guardian Australia.
The three-year Google deal with News Corp goes beyond the Australian market, extending to the publisher’s titles in America and the UK.
No other news publisher has reached a single deal with Google across multiple countries.
The media bargaining code is before the Senate after clearing the House of Representatives overnight.
The legislation, which has bipartisan support, will give the treasurer power to choose which companies are subject to it.
Under the code, a panel - decided by the negotiating parties or the media watchdog - would hear offers and make a decision on payment for news content.
A number of major public health authorities - including Queensland Health, the SA Health pages and the Bureau of Meteorology pages - and other major Australian support services have been blocked on Facebook after the social media giant banned Australians sharing news.
Facebook bans Australian news
Here are Facebook’s restrictions for publishers and users in Australia.
For Australian publishers:
- They are restricted from sharing or posting any content on Facebook Pages
- Admins will still be able to access other features from their Facebook Page, including Page insights and Creator Studio
- We will continue to provide access to all other standard Facebook services, including data tools and CrowdTangle
For international publishers:
- They can continue to publish news content on Facebook, but links and posts can’t be viewed or shared by Australian audiences
For Australian users:
- They cannot view or share Australian or international news content on Facebook or content from Australian and international news Pages
For international users:
- They cannot view or share Australian news content on Facebook or content from Australian news Pages
What is the media bargaining code?
Since April 2020, Australian treasurer Josh Frydenberg has been pushing for a News Media Bargaining Code to make Google and Facebook pay for news content.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) pointed out that media organisations needed “fair payment for news content”.
They argued that Google and Facebook profited off news media by repurposing their articles on their own platforms, which in turn led advertising revenue.
In July, recommendations were made and in December 9 2020, the Treasury Laws Amendment (News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code) Bill 2020, was introduced to parliament.
The tech giants were opposed to the legislation and at first pushed back.
Google buried Australian news content in its search engine while Facebook threatened to remove news from its service altogether.
The code is a backstop; if Google and Facebook fail to reach deals with media organisations, then an arbitration panel will set a binding price for news in cases where Google and Facebook benefitted from repurposing that article.
What about Google?
Google has struck deals independently of the legislation, coming to its first deal with Seven West Media on Monday.
Since then, Nine News and News Corp have also reached an agreement.
The tech giant is also in talks with the ABC and The Guardian.
Frydenberg has claimed the deals as a win.
“‘None of these deals would be happening” if not for the media bargaining code, he said on Wednesday.
What happens now?
There are fears Facebook’s blanket ban will lead to a rise in misinformation - which is already rife on the social platform.
Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said as much on 2GB radio this morning: “There are already questions about the credibility of information and sources on the Facebook platform.”
Facebook said it would promote “dedicated information hubs” for the latest information on COVID-19.
If media organisations can’t reach an agreement with the social media giant, then it could be a permanent change.
Facebook’s Head of News Partnerships, Campbell Brown, said they hoped they would be able to reverse the change later down the track.
“I hope in the future, we can include news for people in Australia once again,” he wrote in a statement.
He said it was an “incredibly difficult decision”.
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