Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) has been allowed to collectively negotiate with Facebook and Google for payments to its member stations' news content featured on the tech platforms.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) provided authorisation for a 10-year period for the industry body, which has 261 members, to negotiate on behalf of its members, excluding those operated by Nine.
“This authorisation allows CRA to negotiate payment with Facebook and Google for its members’ news content, and for its members to engage in discussions with each other about those negotiations,” says ACCC chair Rod Sims.
Authorisation was needed by the ACCC because no digital platforms have been “designated” under the news bargaining code, which would automatically allow collective bargaining for news media businesses.
“The news media bargaining code offers an opportunity for media companies to negotiate payment for their news content for use by the major digital platforms and provides an incentive for digital platforms to voluntarily conduct these negotiations in good faith” Sims says.
“To ensure more efficient and effective negotiations for payment for news content by digital platforms, the ACCC will continue to consider authorisation requests from groups of Australian news media businesses that produce public interest journalism.”
The ACCC has already provided Country Press Australia to bargain with Facebook and Google for its members.
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