(Reuters) – Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc said it would be forced to remove news from its platform altogether if the U.S. Congress passes the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act, arguing broadcasters benefited from posting their content on its platform. The Act makes it easier for news companies to negotiate collectively with internet giants like Meta and Alphabet Inc regarding the terms on which the news companies’ content may be distributed online.
Meta spokesperson Andy Stone in a tweet said the Act fails to recognize that publishers and broadcasters put content on the platform because “it benefits their bottom line – not the other way around.”
A similar Australian law, which took effect in March 2021 after talks with the big tech firms led to a brief shutdown of Facebook news feeds in the country, has largely worked, a government report said.
Since the News Media Bargaining Code took effect, various tech firms including Meta and Alphabet had inked more than 30 deals with media outlets, compensating them for content which generated clicks and advertising dollars, the report added.
(Reporting by Ananya Mariam Rajesh in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
