Facebook will let users share news in Australia again in a few days

Facebook will end the blocking of news sites in Australia within days. This decision comes after the Australian government promised to make some changes to the News Media Bargaining Code, which Facebook had urged.

Facebook has informed the Australian government that it will allow users in the country to share links to news sites again in a few days. The lifting of the block is the result of an agreement the social network has reached with the government of Australia, according to a statement from the finance and communications ministers reported by Australian media such as ABC.

In that statement, Facebook welcomed the ‘constructive discussions’ it had with ministers: “We are pleased that the Australian government has agreed to a number of changes related to our key concerns about commercial deals that recognize the value of our platform. for publishers, in proportion to the value we receive from them.”

According to the ministers, Facebook CEO Marc Zuckerberg has promised that his company will enter into agreements with publishers. One of the changes to the News Media Bargaining Code is that arbitration is called a last resort if a commercial deal cannot be reached. Facebook and Google oppose this arbitration, as it could lead to a binding decision if publishers and the platforms cannot reach an agreement.

Facebook decided last week that Australian users could no longer share links to news on its platform. Also, news no longer appeared in feeds and news media could no longer post. This decision was in response to the country’s code of conduct requiring Facebook and Google to pay news publishers for using their content. Google has already signed deals with media companies after it first threatened to shut down its search engine in the country.