Facebook has agreed to pay Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp Australia for journalism from its local mastheads.
The deal was secured just weeks after Australia passed a controversial world-first law aimed at making tech platforms pay for news content.
News Corp has no disclosed the value of the three-year contract in Australia. Last month, it clinched a global deal with Google.
Murdoch’s media empire began with his Australia newspapers.
The deal is set to cover all of News Corp Australia’s content. It controls about 70% of newspaper circulation in Australia with titles including The Australia, The Daily telegraph and The Herald Sun.
It also owns news.com.au, as well as the Fox News-modelled conservative TV network Sky News Australia, which has grown to become the most-shared Australian news brand on Facebook.
News Corp already has a different deal with Facebook for its US media titles. It involves the platform paying for stories to include in its Facebook News tab – a product not available in Australia.
The Australian deal is much broader, covering all News Corp Australia content shared on Facebook.
