TVNZ keen on 'legal backstop' despite deal with Google

Tuesday, 17 January 2023

The then-broadcasting minister said the law change would address a 'bargaining imbalance'. (Video first published in December 2022).

TVNZ says it supports the Government’s plan to legislate a “backstop” forcing Google and Facebook to negotiate deals with the media, despite reaching its own commercial agreement with Google.

TVNZ this week joined New Zealand Herald publisher NZME, RNZ and several smaller publishers in reaching a deal to supply curated news content to Google for use in its Google News app.

Google launched Google News Showcase in New Zealand in August, agreeing to pay some media firms for their content in what now appears an unsuccessful attempt to try to stave off regulation that could force it to subsidise the media more heavily and more widely.

The launch left other journalism businesses, including Stuff, Newshub owner Warner Bros Discovery, and TVNZ in the cold.

* Government to force Google and Facebook to pay for using NZ news

TVNZ described its deal as a positive step for NZ journalism.

* Google News Showcase launch 'a good start, but not enough' says minister

Google said in a blog post on Tuesday that it was pleased to welcome TVNZ to Google News Showcase.

TVNZ news and current affairs editor Phil O’Sullivan said in a statement supplied by Google that it saw Google’s app as “another great way for New Zealanders to reach our trusted 1 News content”.

Google News Showcase presents news curated by media partners in panels that are displayed in the Google News app.

“Being able to feature our stories alongside the work of our journalist colleagues from a wider media network gives readers a comprehensive general news experience. We see this as a positive step to a strong future for journalism in New Zealand,” the statement said.

Approached for further comment, TVNZ spokesperson Charlotte Wallace clarified on Wednesday that the state-owned broadcaster was “supportive of having legislation in the background to give the industry more leverage and a backstop if fair deals with other platforms aren’t reached”.

“This is all part of a wider package of updates needed to future-proof news media in New Zealand,” she said.

Google wouldn’t comment on how much it was paying any of the publishers for their curated content and Wallace said TVNZ could not disclose the value of its deal, but sources estimated prior to its announcement of a deal with TVNZ that the sum for all the agreements combined was less than $5 million a year.

News Publishers Association general manager Brook Cameron said in August that Google was offering “seemingly low-value agreements to a select few”.

Broadcasting Minister Willie Jackson said then that the deals done at that time were “not enough” and also said he wanted “quality agreements”.

He announced in December that the Government would follow Australia and Canada in legislating a “backstop” requiring Google and Meta negotiate deals to “pay for the local news they use”, estimating the intervention would see $30m to $50m flow to New Zealand media each year.