SOCIAL MEDIA – AUSTRALIA – REGULATION

Tech tax changes could spur job losses at Nine, News Corp

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Original article by Zoe Samios
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 5-Aug-26

The federal government’s changes to its News Bargaining Incentive will allow technology companies to offset a tax levy by securing commercial deals with at least six local media groups. However, the tax offset with each news pubisher will be capped at 16.7 per cent of the digital platform’s tax liability; this means there will be no incentive for them to provide more funding to one media company than another. Nine Entertainment’s CEO Matt Stanton says there could be more job losses in the media sector if the bill is passed by parliament in its current form, because it penalises media groups that have invested more in quality journalism than their peers. News Corp Australia has expressed similar concerns.

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS

Big tech warns news tax a global precedent

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Original article by Sam Buckingham-Jones
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 3-Jun-26

Two US lobby groups have criticised the proposed News Bargaining Incentive in submissions to the federal government. The Software & Information Industry Association and the National Foreign Trade Council both represent technology giants such as Meta and Google, while the latter’s members also include Amazon, Coca-Cola and Shell. The NFTC contends in its submission that the NBI is a "discriminatory" digital services tax that primarily targets US companies. The NBI would impose an additional tax of 2.25 per cent on the Australian revenue of Meta, Google and TikTok if they fail to secure commercial deals with local news publishers for using their content.

CORPORATES
SOFTWARE AND INFORMATION INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION, UNITED STATES. NATIONAL FOREIGN TRADE COUNCIL, META PLATFORMS INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, THE COCA-COLA COMPANY, SHELL PLC, TIKTOK

Big tech hits back at Labor government’s Media Bargaining Incentive plan

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Original article by Clare Armstrong
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 29-Apr-26

The draft legislation for the federal government’s proposed Media Bargaining Incentive was released yesterday, and immediately attracted criticism from Meta and Google. The MBI aims to ensure that media companies are fairly compensated by technology giants that use their content; Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says it will prevent digital platforms from sidestepping their "obligations" under existing rules such as the News Media Bargaining Code. They will incur a tax of 2.25 per cent on their Australian gross revenue unless they make deals with news publishers to pay for use of their content. A Meta spokeswoman has described the MBI as a "government-mandated transfer of wealth", while Google had questioned why LinkedIn owner Microsoft is among the companies that will be exempt.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, META PLATFORMS INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, MICROSOFT CORPORATION, LINKEDIN CORPORATION

Minister to grill Roblox over child grooming fears

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Original article by Tess Bennett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 10-Feb-26

The eSafety Commission has started auditing the age verification measures that Roblox put in place last September with the intention of preventing adults communicating with minors on the platform. The audit comes as Communications Minister Anika Wells seeks an urgent meeting with Roblox’s management, following recent reports that online predators were bypassing the new measures by purchasing age-verified accounts to chat to children, along with a report that a Queensland man allegedly groomed hundreds of children using fake profiles on Roblox, Fortnite and Snapchat.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE ESAFETY COMMISSIONER, ROBLOX, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT, REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, FORTNITE, SNAPCHAT

We will stand firm against the tech giants

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Original article by Sarah Ison
The Australian – Page: 4 : 10-Dec-25

Communications Minister Anika Wells says the federal government is proud of its "world-leading" social media age restrictions, which come into effect today. She adds that the government is on the side of kids, parents and families with regard to online safety, rather than social media platforms. Wells has emphasised that Labor will defend its ban on under-16s’ use of social media platforms, amid several legal challenges and resistance to the policy amongst some technology companies. Meanwhile, Reddit has advised that it will comply with the ban, having previously flagged a legal challenge.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT, REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, REDDIT

Platforms must show how they enforce under-16 ban

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 3-Dec-25

Communications Minister Anika Wells says the federal government must be as "agile and dynamic" as technology companies in enforcing the looming social media age restrictions. Australians under the age of 16 will initially be banned from using 10 social media platforms, but Wells has warned that other platforms will lose their exemption if minors migrate to them and are subjected to the same online conduct that prompted the ban in the first place. Wells adds that social media platforms will be required to provide monthly updates on the number of under-age accounts they have closed, following an initial report one day after the ban takes effect next week.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT, REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS

It’s official: Social media is ubiquitous among 14-15 year old Australians

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 3-Dec-25

New data from Roy Morgan shows that 624,000 Australian children aged 14 and 15 use at least one social media platform in an average four weeks. The research shows exceptionally high reach across the major platforms, with YouTube (95%), Snapchat (87%), Facebook (81%) and Instagram (78%) the most widely used among the 14-15 age group. Significant proportions also use Reddit (70%), TikTok (59%) and X/Twitter (41%), while Twitch (12%) and Threads (9%) remain more niche platforms. The findings come at a pivotal moment, as legislation which comes into force on 10 December aims to ban or significantly restrict social media access for children under the age of 16. With almost all (99.96%) 14-15-year-olds using at least one platform, the potential impact on young Australians, parents, educators and digital providers will be substantial.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, YOUTUBE INCORPORATED, SNAPCHAT INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM LLC, REDDIT, TIKTOK, X CORPORATION, TWITCH, THREADS

Surprise additions to list of banned tech platforms

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Original article by Sam Buckingham-Jones
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 5-Nov-25

The federal government’s final list of social media platforms that will be subject to age restrictions has been expanded to include Reddit and video livestreaming service Kick. It had previously announced that people under the age of 16 will be barred from using Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, X and YouTube from 10 December. Communications Minister Anika Wells says the list is ‘dynamic’ and will be updated over time. The eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman-Grant has concluded that the "sole or significant purpose" of the eight platforms that will be subject to the ban is to enable online social interaction; platforms that are primarily used for messaging and online gaming will be excluded from the ban.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT, REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE ESAFETY COMMISSIONER, REDDIT INCORPORATED, KICK, FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM LLC, SNAPCHAT INCORPORATED, TIKTOK, X CORPORATION, YOUTUBE INCORPORATED

YouTube blasts eSafety chief for ban on under 16s

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Original article by Sam Buckingham-Jones
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 10 : 25-Jun-25

The federal government’s proposal to exempt YouTube from its ban on allowing children under the age of 16 to access social media continues to attract scrutiny. YouTube contends that eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant has provided "inconsistent and contradictory" advice to the government in her recommendation to scrap the exemption; YouTube executive Rachel Lord notes that Inman Grant had previously expressed concern that the ban may limit young Australians’ access to ‘critical support’. Lord also argues that YouTube is a video-streaming platform rather than a social media platform.

CORPORATES
YOUTUBE INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE ESAFETY COMMISSIONER

D-day is on the horizon for Meta

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Original article by James Madden
The Australian – Page: 19 : 9-Dec-24

The federal government will shortly decide whether to ‘designate’ Facebook parent Meta under the news media bargaining code. This would force the digital giant to negotiate revenue-sharing deals with Australian news publishers, almost a year after it announced plans to terminate these arrangements. A spokesman for Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones has downplayed suggestions that a decision on designating Meta is imminent, although sources have indicated that the government will act before Christmas.

CORPORATES
META PLATFORMS INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY