Meta Calls Australia's Plan to Make Platforms Pay for News "Grossly Unfair"

Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, described as "grossly unfair" an Australian proposal that would require large digital platforms to pay for the news content shared on their services, Al Jazeera reported. The company argued that the plan violates Australia's commitments under its free-trade agreement with the United States.

The dispute revives a long-running conflict between Canberra and the technology platforms over how the value created by journalism should be shared. Australia previously introduced a bargaining code that required platforms to reach payment agreements with publishers, and the new proposal would extend that obligation.

Meta's reference to the trade agreement connects the dispute to the broader question of how digital services are treated within international commerce, an area where the United States has consistently defended its technology firms against foreign taxes and content-payment rules.

The dispute is part of a wider regulatory contest over the economics of online media. Governments seeking to support domestic news face platforms that can reduce or remove news entirely, as Meta has done in other countries, which raises the question of who pays the cost.