Labor's media gamble
Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones confirmed to Capital Brief that he is considering “substantial advice” from the ACCC and Treasury on forcing Meta to pay for news content.
As the Albanese government settles on its plan to curb gambling advertising, it is also weeks away from deciding how to force social media companies to pay for news.
While the two issues aren’t directly linked, Australia’s major media companies — many of whom are both publishers and broadcasters — are closely watching both developments. After losing out on new prominence and anti-siphoning legislation introduced in early July, which they said failed to protect local broadcasters from global streaming platforms, the free-to-air TV companies are desperate for a win — or at least to avoid another hit to their bottom line.
With an election due by May, Labor doesn't want to disappoint the major media companies on two more fronts.
Cabinet Minister Bill Shorten brought the issue to the fore last week. Speaking on the ABC’s Q&A program, he explained that the reason the government would cap — not ban — gambling commercials was because “free-to-air media is in diabolical trouble” and facing multiple threats after Meta’s decision not to renew funding deals under the news media bargaining code.
