Meta blasts Australia's proposal to tax tech giants

Meta has criticized an Australian proposal to impose a new tax on social media platforms for using news content to fund media outlets, calling the move “grossly unfair,” News.Az reports, citing Anadolu.

“Our position is clear: this law is poorly designed, grossly unfair, and will fail to deliver a diverse and sustainable news industry,” said Meta, the $1.6 trillion parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.

The reaction followed Australia’s proposed News Bargaining Incentive (NBI), under which Canberra would impose a levy on Meta, Google, and TikTok. Revenue raised through the measure would be distributed to local news organizations based on the number of journalists they employ, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

Under the Labor government’s proposal, Meta would be required to strike agreements with local media organizations or face taxes of up to 2.25% of revenue generated in Australia. The country is also the first to ban social media access for children aged 16 and under.

The tech giant argued that the legislation would effectively leave Australian journalism dependent on a government-administered subsidy system while doing little to support smaller publishers and independent journalists.

“Our position is clear: this law is poorly designed, grossly unfair, and will fail to deliver a diverse and sustainable news industry,” Meta reiterated in its formal response to Canberra.

Earlier in 2024, Meta withdrew from a 2021 agreement and ended Facebook News services in Australia.

Meta also argued that the NBI violates commitments made under the Australia–United States Free Trade Agreement.

It described the proposal as a “discriminatory, retroactive tax targeting a handful of foreign companies,” noting that firms such as Microsoft, Snapchat, and OpenAI are reportedly excluded despite offering similar services.

News.Az 

By Nijat Babayev