Australia proposes 2% levy on tech giants who refuse to pay local media outlets

The Australian government ​said on Tuesday that Meta, Alphabet's Google and TikTok could face multimillion-dollar charges if they did not negotiate deals ‌to pay local media outlets for news on their platforms.

A proposed News Bargaining Incentive would tax the three big tech companies 2.25% on their local revenues unless they struck agreements, with the proceeds to be directed to news companies to boost Australian journalism.

"People are increasingly getting their news directly from Facebook, from TikTok and ​from Google, and we believe it's only fair that large digital platforms contribute to the hard work of journalism that ​enriches their feeds and that drives their revenue," Communications Minister Anika Wells told a news conference.

"Platforms should ⁠do deals with news organizations. If they decide not to, they will end up paying more," she said.

When asked whether the government ​was concerned about any backlash from US President Donald Trump, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said: "We're a sovereign nation. And my government will make ​decisions based upon the Australian national interest."

The Trump administration opposes digital services taxes on US tech giants and has threatened tariffs on countries that pursue them.

A joint statement from the executives of Australia's biggest media outlets, including Nine Entertainment, public broadcaster ABC and News Corp Australia, said the plan was a "critical step toward securing the future of Australian news".

"If digital ​platforms fail to pay for ​the use of the news ⁠content from which they profit, then journalism becomes unsustainable," the statement said.

But a spokesperson for Meta said the idea that it took news content from publishers was "simply wrong," adding that using the levy to ​fund local media would create a "news industry dependent on a government-administered subsidy scheme."

"This proposed legislation, which would ​apply to platforms ⁠regardless of whether news content even appears on our services, is nothing more than a digital services tax," they said.

Google also opposed the plan. "While we are currently reviewing the draft legislation, we have been clear: we reject the need for this tax," a spokesperson said.

A spokesperson for TikTok ⁠declined to ​comment.

(With input from Reuters)