Australia moves to tax Meta, Google and TikTok to fund newsrooms

The home pages of Meta, Google and TikTok are displayed on devices in Sydney, Tuesday, April 28, 2026. Rick Rycroft/AP

Rick Rycroft/AP

MELBOURNE, Australia — Australia has proposed taxing digital giants Meta, Google and TikTok a proportion of their revenue to pay for news reporters.

The government released draft legislation Tuesday it intends to introduce to Parliament by July 2 that would create a financial incentive for the social media companies to strike deals with news organizations to pay for journalism.

The platforms’ criticisms included that the proposal was a “digital services tax” that misunderstood the evolving advertising industry and

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