Government supports including TikTok in news media bargaining code

The Albanese government may force TikTok into the news media bargaining code as part of upcoming changes to the scheme.

Video streaming app TikTok may find itself swept into a revised News Media Bargaining Code. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Tim Pascoe

Video streaming app TikTok may find itself swept into a revised News Media Bargaining Code, with Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones declaring the Albanese government is in favour of including the platform.

Laying out the government’s agenda for 2024, Mr Jones told The Australian he supported a renewed push to force tech giants to fund Australia’s news media.

Mr Jones, who is also the finance minister, said the News Media Bargaining Code was about “supporting journalism” and ensuring the sector had a viable business model.

He said it was important that platforms which benefit from journalistic content should be “paying a fair price for it”.

More than 30 commercial agreements have been struck between digital platforms Google and Meta, representing platforms such as Facebook, Google, YouTube, and Instagram, since the code’s introduction in February 2021.

Mr Jones said Google and Meta were currently parties to commercial deals, but there were “plenty of other social media platforms” benefiting from news media which were not paying for it.

“TikTok is carrying media but it is not included,” he said.

“I think TikTok should be included. That’s the obvious one for the moment.”

Mr Jones has been given charge of the review into the code after Treasurer Jim Chalmers handed the task to his deputy.

A review of the code has just concluded, with the Albanese government committing to implement all the recommendations of Treasury, which concluded the landmark scheme had been a success.

Assistant treasurer Stephen Jones supports pushing TikTok into the news media bargaining code under upcoming changes to the scheme. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

The code was aimed at forcing tech companies to pay for the use of news content produced by news organisations. It also aims to even the bargaining imbalance between the tech giants and smaller media companies.

Treasury last year made five recommendations to improve the code’s operation, with the government set to introduce legislation in the coming months to amend the current laws to strengthen the code, which is overseen by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.

Almost $100m annually has flown to Australian media companies as a result of the deals struck in 2021 but many are set for renewal in the coming months.

Nine Entertainment, which has warned tech giants were reluctant to ink new deals, has called for the government to include TikTok, YouTube, and Twitter as additional platforms under the mandatory code.

News Corp declined to comment.

Meta, operators of Facebook and Instagram, has flagged it was reconsidering payments to news organisations, after cutting back on roles linked to the scheme in an organisations reshuffle.

In its submission to the code’s review, Meta also questioned why Microsoft and Apple were not included in the code.

Mr Jones said the government expected tech companies and media platforms would enter into new commercial agreement negotiations “in good faith”.

But he warned “we’ve got powers under the code, we’re not afraid to use them”.

The code allows the Treasurer to make a determination specifying how it applies to digital platforms, if they are found not to be co-operating as per the legislation.

However, to date, no platforms have been designated under the code.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority can also appoint mediators to manage negotiations between media companies and tech giants under the code.

Canada recently secured a deal from Google to fund news in the country, but Meta announced it would ban news content from its platforms in response to that country’s scheme.

Mr Jones cautioned any attempt to block news media on platforms seeking to prevent participation in the code would be a “very unwise step”.

“We don’t want a single state media source,” the assistant treasurer said. “We want to have a viable media with quality journalism and the media bargaining code is part of that.”