Google, Friday, threatened to pull its search engine from Australia over a proposed media code that would require the tech firm to pay for news content.
Mel Silva, managing director for Google’s Australian operations, told a Senate enquiry the code was unworkable and the company was unable to calculate the financial risk, news agency AAP reported.
Leaving the Australian market is the “only rational choice if this law were to pass,” she said.
The news media bargaining code bill was introduced into Australia’s parliament in December.
If passed, it will force tech companies to pay news outlets for their content or face fines of up to 10 million Australian dollars (7.7 million US dollars), according to AAP.
The code would initially apply to Facebook NewsFeed and Google Search.
Also on Friday, Google published a video and letter addressing Australian users in a campaign against the news code.
Silva compared paying news outlets for displaying links to their content to recommending coffee shops to a friend and then being billed by the coffee shops for mentioning them.
“When you put a price on linking to certain information, you break the way that search engines work and you no longer have a free and open web,” Silva said.
The company wants to pay publishers through its Google News Showcase programme rather than for links.
Nearly 200 publications have signed deals with the programme, Google said.
However, the threat is Google’s most potent yet as the digital giant tries to stem a flow of regulatory action worldwide.
At least 94% of online searches in Australia go through the Alphabet Inc. unit, according to the local competition regulator.
“We don’t respond to threats,” Australia Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Friday. “Australia makes our rules for things you can do in Australia. That’s done in our parliament. It’s done by our government. And that’s how things work here in Australia.”
Facebook Inc., the only other company targeted by the legislation, also opposes the law. The social media platform reiterated at Friday’s hearing it’s considering blocking Australians from sharing news on Facebook if the law is pushed through.
The legislation is designed to support a local media industry, including Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp., that has struggled to adapt to the digital economy.
Google’s tougher stance drew rebukes from lawmakers at the hearing. Senator Andrew Bragg accused the tech giant of trying to “blackmail” Australians and policymakers.
“If this version of the code were to become law, it would give us no real choice but to stop making Google Search available in Australia,” Silva told a panel of senators. She described the law as an “untenable financial and operational precedent.” (dpa/NAN)
