Federal parliament passed the News Bargaining Incentive in August 2026, creating a charge on large digital platforms that fail to strike commercial deals with Australian news publishers, despite opposition from Google, Meta and the US government.
The law is the Albanese government’s answer to Meta’s 2024 retreat from paying for news. It replaces a system platforms could escape by simply removing news, and puts Australia back at the front of a global fight over whether technology companies should fund journalism.
How it works
The government released draft legislation in late April 2026. Under the draft, large social media and search platforms faced a 2.25% charge on their Australian revenue unless they signed deals with local publishers, with deal spending offsetting the charge. It targets platforms with more than A$250 million in annual Australian revenue and large user bases, which currently means Meta, Alphabet and TikTok. AI platforms are not included.
According to the government, platforms must strike deals with at least eight news businesses to qualify for the lower rate, and money from platforms that opt out goes back to the sector through a News Journalism Payments scheme. The law closes a loophole in the old code that let a platform withdraw news to avoid its obligations.
How it got here
Australia introduced the News Media Bargaining Code in 2021, pushing platforms into deals with publishers. In early 2024 Meta walked away from its Australian news deals, which the industry estimated cost about $70 million a year. The new scheme is expected to raise about $250 million a year for Australian journalism.
Consultation pushed the bill past the winter recess. The final version raised the distribution loading for regional journalists, small and medium publishers and outlets serving underrepresented communities to 20%, up from 10%, AdNews reported.
The pushback
A Trump administration spokesperson called the draft levy “foreign extortion”. Google said “We reject the need for this tax”, and Meta called it “nothing more than a digital services tax”, ACS Information Age reported. The US tech lobby group CCIA called it discriminatory.
Communications Minister Anika Wells said the laws “back smaller and regional publishers which are so important in providing communities with a voice.” Country Press Australia president Damian Morgan called the passage “a landmark moment for Australian journalism”, according to AdNews.
Jack’s take
This is now a global fight, and Australia went first, again. Whether the scheme works comes down to whether the platforms sign deals or simply pay the charge, and I would not assume they choose the deals.