It was worked on in one-hour chunks over several weeks as brain clarity, pain and energy levels allowed… often from bed. The ACCC called the statements 'misinformation'.NB: This article was written by someone whose cognitive function has been impacted by Covid-19. Last month, Google began an advertising campaign using pop-up ads on its main search page that said its free service would be 'at risk' and users' personal data could be shared if the firm is made to pay news organisations for their content. Like in most countries, Australia's traditional media companies in recent years have seen their mainstay advertising income streams eroded by online competitors, and consumers shy away from paid subscription. 'Unfortunately, no business can operate that way,' he wrote. The proposed law was 'the only reasonable way to even up the bargaining power between Facebook, Google and Australian News Media Businesses,' Fair said.įacebook's Easton in his blog post called the proposed law 'unprecedented in its reach', and said the company could either remove news entirely or agree to pay publishers for as much content as they wanted at a price with no clear limits.

'Australian Facebook users are being held to ransom as a tactic to intimidate the Australian government into backing down on this issue,' she said in a statement.

firm would 'say and do anything to avoid making a fair payment for news content'. 'As the ACCC and the Government work to finalise the draft legislation, we hope all parties will engage in constructive discussions,' Sims said in a statement.īridget Fair, chief executive of Free TV Australia, a lobby group for free-to-air broadcasters, said Facebook's plan amounted to 'bullying' and that the U.S. 'We don't respond to coercion or heavy handed threats wherever they come from,' Frydenberg said in an emailed response to Reuters' request for comment.Īustralian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) Chair Rod Sims, who is overseeing the proposed law, said Facebook's response was 'ill-timed and misconceived', and that the proposal 'simply aims to bring fairness and transparency to Facebook and Google's relationships with Australian news media businesses'.

Facebook spin to win groups