Sydney, Australia:
Facebook restored official Facebook pages of news and media companies in Australia including that ABC News Australia, Seven News Network, and Nine News Network Friday morning. The social media company caused alarm with its sudden decision last Thursday to block news on its platform across Australia – news pages including that of Nepalese Voice Australia was included in the blackout.
The government and the social media company spent days negotiating, including discussions between Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg.
Both Facebook and the Australia Government are happy with the negotiations. The new deal, legislated on Tuesday, will still allow news publishers to charge Facebook money (as per the government’s wishes), but Facebook is likely to pay less money than earlier demanded – thus creating a win-win situation for both.
