Bipartite senators in the United States on Wednesday introduced a revised version of a bill that would make it easier for digital news publishers to negotiate with Big Tech companies (such as Google and Meta) for using their content on the former’s respective platforms. As per news agency Reuters, the bill titled ‘The Journalism Competition and Preservation Act’ endeavours to remove “legal obstacles to news organisations’ ability to negotiate collectively and secure fair terms from gatekeeper platforms that regularly access news content without paying for its value”.
The Digital News Publishers Association (DNPA), a collaborative forum of digital arms of Indian media organisations, referred to it as a “major shot in the arm”. “It is a big step in the right direction. It vindicates our stand here in India as we strive to make Big Tech more transparent, inclusive and accommodative in terms of revenue-sharing.” Earlier this year, the forum had complained to the Competition Council of India (CCI) that led to an investigation into Google’s alleged malpractices in sharing revenues with digital news entities.
As reported by Reuters, an older version of the bill was introduced in March 2021. It, however, was opposed by tech-based industry groups NetChoice and the Computer & Communications Industry whose participants include Meta and Alphabet (the parent company of Google).
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