SYDNEY (Reuters) – Fb (NASDAQ:) proprietor Meta is contemplating blocking information content material from the platform in Australia if the federal government makes it pay licensing charges, an organization consultant advised a parliamentary listening to on Friday.
Meta’s regional coverage director Mia Garlick advised lawmakers “all options are on the table” when requested if the corporate would block Australians from sharing information content material to keep away from paying charges.
“There’s a large number of channels that people can get news content from,” Garlick advised the inquiry.
She stated Meta was ready for Canberra to determine if it will apply an untested 2021 regulation which provides the federal government the appropriate to set the charges U.S. tech giants pay media shops for hyperlinks.
The feedback are the strongest indication up to now that Meta would take the identical hardline method in Australia it took in Canada in 2023 when that nation launched related legal guidelines.
Meta struck offers with Australian media companies together with Information Corp (NASDAQ:) and the Australian Broadcasting Corp when the regulation was introduced in Australia, however has since stated it is not going to renew these preparations past 2024.
It now falls on Australia’s assistant treasurer to determine whether or not to step in and pressure Fb to pay for information content material. The assistant treasurer has stated he’s nonetheless gathering recommendation however that Meta appears to respect the regulation solely when it fits.
Requested if blocking information from Fb in Australia would quantity to sidestepping the regulation, Garlick stated taking that motion can be complying with it.
“Every other law – tax laws, safety laws, privacy laws – we work to comply with,” she stated. “It’s just compliance would look slightly different in relation to this law if it’s fully enacted.”
Garlick defended Meta’s processes for Australians to complain in the event that they believed the corporate was spreading dangerous misinformation or scams, though she stated its content material moderation centres have been all in different nations.
Requested about Australian mining billionaire Andrew Forrest, who’s suing Meta for displaying cryptocurrency rip-off ads that includes his face, Garlick stated the corporate had processes in place to detect and cease scams, however “there are a lot of challenges”.
How might Meta name itself an promoting enterprise when “some ads sell lies”, requested Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Younger.
“We have policies and systems and tools to do everything we can to prevent those ads,” Garlick replied.