Australia passes levy law on tech platforms to fund local journalism

Australia's parliament passed the News Bargaining Incentive on Thursday, August 20, 2026, implementing a landmark policy designed to compel major technology platforms to financially support local journalism. The new law imposes a 2.5 percent levy on the Australian advertising revenue of tech companies with significant search or social media services, unless they reach commercial agreements with a minimum of eight local news publishers. This closes a multiyear legislative battle that began after Meta found a way to avoid paying for news by simply removing it from its platforms.

The levy applies to companies with Australian advertising revenue exceeding A$250 million. The list of targeted firms includes Meta, Alphabet's Google, TikTok, and Microsoft's LinkedIn. The rate was set at 2.5 percent following a recent increase from an initially proposed 2.25 percent, a change the government called a technical adjustment. The measure is explicitly designed not as a tax to be collected, but as a financial incentive for platforms to negotiate licensing deals with news media businesses.

To avoid the charge, platforms must finalize agreements with at least eight publishers before the end of...