Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has said Facebook is in talks with the government again after the technology platform decided to restrict users in Australia from sharing news content.
‘What I’m glad about is that Facebook is behind the table. And that’s what we want to see, “Morrison told a news conference on Saturday morning. “We want to work through this issue. I therefore welcome the fact that they are in talks with the government again, as they should have been. ”
The company has ‘temporarily befriended us’, he said.
The comment is the latest development in a back-and-forth between Sydney and Facebook over a proposed law that would make the platform pay publishers for content.
Facebook announced this week that it will limit the ability of Australian publishers to share or restrict content on its pages, and that Australian users will not be able to view or share the link and postings of international publishers.
Morrison swung against the proposal, urging Facebook to reverse its decision.
“The idea of shutting down the kind of sites they did yesterday, as a kind of threat – well, I know how Australians react to that and I thought it was not a good move on their part,” he said. Morrison said Friday.
“These actions were completely indefensible,” he added on Saturday.
The implications of the law on the relationship with Australia with the major technology platforms draw the attention of legislators in other countries who are devising their own regulatory measures.
While Facebook has taken strict action against the law, Google has entered into an agreement with News Corp and the Australian Seven West Media for content.