Australia regulator 'concerned' about Facebook approach to media licencing law
FILE PHOTO: A Facebook logo is displayed on a smartphone in this illustration taken January 6, 2020. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
SYDNEY: The Australian regulator behind a law forcing large internet platforms to negotiate licencing deals with media outlets said on Monday he was "concerned" about Facebook's cooperation, seven months after the rule took effect.
Under the News Media Bargaining Code, the social media giant and Alphabet Inc's Google must negotiate with news outlets for content that drives traffic to their websites or face possible government intervention.
"Google is still negotiating and finalising deals with more news media companies and seems to be approaching this exercise in the right spirit," said Australian Competition and Consumer Commission Chair Rod Sims in a statement.
"We are concerned that Facebook does not currently seem to take the same approach."
