Google plans to stop linking news content in New Zealand if proposed law is passed

Alphabet’s (NASDAQ:GOOGL) (NASDAQ:GOOG) unit Google said it will stop linking to New Zealand news reports and cancel the agreements it has with domestic news organizations, if the nation’s government greenlights a new bill that would force tech companies to pay a fair price for content that appears on their platforms.

Google noted that it has been transparent with the Government that if the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill, in its current form, becomes a law, it would be forced to make significant changes to its products and news investments.

“Specifically, we’d 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,” said Caroline Rainsford, Google New Zealand Country director in a blog post on Friday.

Rainsford added that Google has proposed reasonable alternatives to the government which do not harm smaller, local or regional publishers and maintain the principles of the open web, in line with recent agreements the company has signed elsewhere.

In July, the New Zealand government noted that it would advance legislation started by the previous Labour Party-led-government which ensures fair revenue sharing between operators of digital platforms and news media outlets. The potential legislation is still under review and could see changes, including to bring it more in line with Australian law, as per a report from Reuters.

New Zealand Minister for Media and Communications Paul Goldsmith said that the government was still in the consultation phase and would make announcements in due course. “My officials and I have met with Google on a number of occasions to discuss their concerns, and will continue to do so,” said Goldsmith, according to the report.

The minority government coalition partner ACT does not support the legislation. However, it could find enough cross-party support to go through once finalized, the report noted.

Australia unveiled a law in 2021 which gave the government power to make internet companies negotiate content supply deals with media outlets. In 2022, a review disclosed by the Australian government showed that it largely worked, the report added.