▲ Meta and Facebook logos (File photo)
Australia has enacted a law that imposes a levy of a certain percentage of revenue on global big tech companies, such as Meta, that fail to sign news usage agreements with domestic media outlets.
The Australian Parliament passed the News Bargaining Incentive bill containing these measures on the 20th local time.
According to the law, social media and search service platform companies with advertising revenue in Australia exceeding 250 million Australian dollars—approximately 247 billion Korean won—must pay a 2.5% levy of that revenue if they do not enter into news supply agreements with Australian media outlets.
Big tech companies meeting this threshold include Meta, Google, and TikTok.
If a platform meeting the lower revenue threshold fails to establish any news agreements, the levy it must pay will amount to approximately 6.17 billion Korean won.
The amounts contracted between these companies and Australian media outlets will be offset against the levy by 150% for contracts with large media companies and 200% for small and medium-sized media companies.
The Australian government issued a statement saying, "Today is an important day for Australia's news industry and media," and adding, "The law is in place, and the message is clear that platforms must pursue commercial agreements [with Australian media outlets]."
The Australian government plans to distribute and support the additional tax revenues generated through this law to media outlets.
Previously in April, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese unveiled a draft of the bill, emphasizing that "investment in journalism is essential for a healthy democracy" and that "giant multinational corporations should not take [news] without appropriate compensation for those who produced creative content and use it solely to generate profits for themselves."
Regarding concerns over potential backlash from the Donald Trump administration in the United States, he noted, "We are a sovereign nation" and "The government will make decisions prioritizing Australia's national interest."
The Trump administration has threatened to impose tariffs on countries targeting U.S. big tech companies with taxes.
The Australian government has been tightening social media regulations, having introduced a policy in December of last year to block social media accounts for minors under 16 for the first time globally.
(Photo: Getty Images)
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