Very close to Deal and Google Facebook
NP says Postmedia to get what Australia already has
2021-06-22 09:26 ET - In the News
See In the News (C-PNC) Postmedia Network Canada Corp (2)
The National Post reports in its Tuesday edition that Facebook and Google have finally started to pay for news in Australia, and despite a barrage of hyperbole and resistance, the sky is not falling: people can still find, read and share news on the platforms, and the companies still dominate the advertising markets.
The Post's Joel Trenaman writes that this is a significant victory for the media industry in its battle with Big Tech over revenue. This will soon be the reality in Canada, as well.
On May 25, Facebook announced it had reached deals with 14 Canadian publishers, including FP Newspapers, Saltwire Network and Le Devoir, but notably not the largest players: Postmedia, Torstar, The Globe and Mail, and La Presse.
Facebook calls it the "News Innovation Test," and says it will "pay participating publishers for the ability to link to additional news stories not already posted on Facebook."
That means publishers will not be paid for stories they post themselves, but also that Facebook is not reproducing the stories either -- reader traffic will be driven to the partner websites. Financial terms of the three-year agreements are not disclosed.
These kinds of contracts are a compromise that seems to work for both sides.