Internet giant Google has threatened to remove its search engine from Australia after the government passed a controversial bill to make the tech company share royalties with news publishers.
The law Australia is introducing would be the first in the world to make Google, Facebook, and other similar tech companies pay media outlets for their news content.
However, the US firms disagree, warning that they could withdraw their services.
At a Canberra Senate hearing on Friday, Google (GOOGL) Australia Managing Director Mel Silva said the bill ‘remains unworkable’ and would break the way millions of users search for content on the web.
“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,” she told lawmakers.
“That would be a bad outcome not just for us, but for the Australian people, media diversity, and small businesses who use Google Search,” she added. Silva also said that the company’s biggest concern was that the proposal “would require payments simply for links and snippets just to news results in Search.”
“The free service we offer Australian users, and our business model, has been built on the ability to link freely between websites,” she went on.
However, according to Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, lawmakers would not yield to the “threats.” He said that his government remained committed to advancing laws in parliament this year, adding: “Let me be clear: 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, and people who want to work with that in Australia, you’re very welcome.”
Lawmakers challenged Mel Silva’s comments saying Google was blackmailing and intimidating the nation for proposing the reform.
What’s behind the law?
Google is the most prominent search engine in Australia, and the authorities of the country described it as an almost essential utility.
However, the government believes that tech platforms get customers from people who want to read the news, so they should pay newsrooms a “fair” amount for their work.
Media companies have lobbied the government to force tech companies to negotiate on advertising revenue.
