Australian media companies will receive a greater slice of tech giants' revenue under a government bid to secure the journalism sector, with Labor now close to implementing its news bargaining incentive laws.
The government's proposed laws will push companies like Google, Meta and TikTok to strike commercial deals with news organisations to use the publishers' content on their platforms.
Tech companies agreeing to deals will pay a smaller share of their Australian advertising revenues than if they refuse to negotiate.
Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, in June slammed the government's proposed laws, with the tech giant labelling it an unfair tax which won't guarantee a diverse and sustainable news sector.
Introducing legislation in the lower house on Thursday to implement the news bargaining incentives, Communications Minister Anika Wells said journalism mattered to democracy.
"Quality journalism does not happen on its own. It is reliant on skilled journalists, strong newsrooms, and sustainable news organisations,'' she said.
"In a 24-hour news cycle, people expect news to be accurate, timely, and available wherever they live. To deliver this, Australia needs more journalists, not fewer, because journalists are the lifeblood of Australian news."
Labor announced a version of the legislation earlier in August following public consultation, before announcing the further changes to secure the support of the coalition.
These include increasing the number of deals tech companies will have to sign to at least eight to offset payments to the government.
Each deal will also be capped at 25 per cent of the total levy to ensure media outlets receive a reasonable cut based on reach and significance in the market.
Australian Associated Press (AAP) has secured a five per cent cut of all revenue collected by the government through the news bargaining incentive.
AAP's chief executive Emma Cowdroy said the funds recognised the organisation's "important role in Australia's media ecosystem".
"AAP is the nation's wholesale news provider, supplying hundreds of outlets with factual and objective reporting. Our primary source journalism also surfaces across digital platforms, often without payment," she said.
"This measure acknowledges that the secondary use of AAP's content by digital platforms should be compensated.''
Assistant Treasurer Daniel Mulino said changes to the bill would amend the reference year to account for an extra year of digital-advertising revenue growth, providing more income to publishers.
"This measure strengthens the news media bargaining code, responds to changes in digital markets, backs Australian journalism, and ensures large digital platforms cannot avoid making a fair contribution to the news content from which they derive value," he said.
"Public interest journalism is not free to produce."
The changes are on top of existing measures including a grant program for small publishers and start-ups, including networking platforms like LinkedIn, and broadening the definition of journalists.
