David Farrar: Thank you Donald

The Herald reports:

The future of a proposed law that would force Facebook and Google to help fund the New Zealand journalism that contributes to their megabillion-dollar empires appears uncertain, in the wake of Donald Trump’s threats to impose tariffs on countries that target US companies.

David Farrar: Scheme to levy fees on search engines and social media sites

How annoyed would NZers be if NZ news media were no longer findable on search engines and social media?

Readers will be aware that the Government’s Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill has seen both Meta and Google warn that rather than pay a levy under the proposed law for links to news stories, they would block NZ news stories from Google and Facebook.

Curia was asked to poll 1,000 New Zealanders on:

Nick Hanne: Is the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill a risk for our democracy?

Our politicians are scared of Big Tech, and so they should be. But at some point they’re going to have to address it in a way that not only keeps the marketplace competitive, but also democratic.

The Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill is set to have its second reading in Parliament next week. What happens next has significant implications for the right of all New Zealanders to "seek, impart and receive information and opinions" as guaranteed under section 14 of the Bill of Rights Act.

Greg Treadwell: 14 community newspapers due to close....

With 14 community newspapers due to close, too many parts of NZ are becoming ‘news deserts’

When media company NZME proposed the closure of 14 community newspapers last week, the so-called “news desert” encroached a little further into the local information landscape.

David Farrar: Will the Government see sense?

Google announced:

As a significant longtime supporter of New Zealand’s news industry, we are deeply concerned about the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill. This Bill proposes a “link tax” that would require Google to pay simply for linking to news articles. While Google supports efforts to foster a sustainable future for New Zealand news, this Bill is not the right approach. We have outlined these concerns transparently in public submissions and in ongoing consultation with the Government.

Dr Eric Crampton: Canada’s example shows how ‘link tax’ bill will fail

New Zealand moves inexorably from the ‘faff around’ to the ‘find out’ phase of the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill process.

On Friday, Google’s New Zealand blog noted that if the bill becomes law, Google would be “forced to stop linking to news content on Google Search, Google News, or Discover surfaces in New Zealand and discontinue our current commercial agreements and ecosystem support with New Zealand news publishers.”

Google described the Bill as setting a ‘link tax’.

Dr Eric Crampton: What planet are they on?

New Zealand's newspaper chiefs' views on how the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill works is somewhat at odds with the text of the Bill.

Google today, admirably, said they'll stop linking to New Zealand news outlets in search if the Bill goes ahead.

News Publishers' Association's Andrew Holden and Stuff's Sinead Boucher aren't happy about that. But contrast what they say with what the legislation says.

Brian Easton? Should Social Media Help Fund News Providers?

The underlying economics of the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill rests on intellectual property rights.

I have written elsewhere about the tension between information as a public good which economic efficiency requires to be freely available and yet, because it is costly to produce, may require payment to those who create the information. Any practical resolution of the tension will be imperfect.

Dr Eric Crampton: Media Bill isn't a change for the better

I wonder whether Media Minister Paul Goldsmith appreciates the problem that he has caused for the tech sector, for media companies, for himself, and for his government.

Before the election, National Party spokesperson Melissa Lee condemned Labour’s Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill. At first reading, she referred to it as a ‘shakedown’.

It seemed obvious that a National-led government would kill the Bill. So some who might have provided warnings at Select Committee did not submit.

Damien Grant: Luxon's government is indistinguishable from its predecessors

On macro issues, Luxon's government is indistinguishable from its predecessors

A sip, sometimes a whiff, is enough. It is not necessary to consume the entire bottle to know its contents.

We need to talk about Christopher.

Dr Eric Crampton: The Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill

The New Zealand Initiative is urging the government to abandon the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill, warning that the proposed legislation could harm the very news organisations it aims to help.

In a new research note, the Initiative argues that the bill, which would require large digital platforms to negotiate payment for news content with New Zealand media companies, is based on flawed premises and risks significant unintended consequences.

Merja Myllylahti: AI search tools and chatbots may make NZ news less visible and reliable – new study

Evidence is mounting that the new generative AI internet search tools provided by OpenAI, Google and Microsoft can increase the risk of returning false, misleading or partially correct information.

Despite the implications of this for the news industry and an informed democracy, the New Zealand government has decided to leave AI considerations out of its plans to revive the previous government’s Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill.

Mike's Minute: The media bill won't work

The fact the Government is going ahead with Labour's Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill, albeit with amendments, is not the story.

The fact ACT has played the “Agree to Disagree" card is not really the story.

The real story is the question of, does it solve the problem?

David Farrar: Stupid Government backing Willie’s bill

Paul Goldsmith reports:

The Government is taking immediate action to support New Zealand’s media and content production sectors, while it develops a long-term reform programme, Media and Communications Minister Paul Goldsmith says.

Eric Crampton: The 'shakedown' news legislation that is heading to parliament

Shakedown rackets are, thankfully, illegal.

Except when government legislates them. In that case, all bets are off. And if I were Facebook, I’d be off too – or at least thinking about it.

The Government finally released the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill this week. The bill aims to improve news funding by requiring payments from those who link to news online.