The legislature’s Transportation Committee yesterday unanimously decided to freeze 10 percent of next year’s budget for a Ministry of Digital Affairs sub-agency until it submits a report on its progress in facilitating negotiations between Taiwanese news outlets and large international platforms over the pricing of online news content.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsu Chih-chieh (許智傑) proposed the motion, as the committee reviewed the budget plans of the Administration of Digital Industries and the Administration for Cyber Security — two agencies under the Ministry of Digital Affairs — for the next fiscal year.
“International digital platforms have reaped most of the revenues from online advertising by running content produced by news media, which has seen their revenues drop substantially. We cannot let the trend continue, as it could bankrupt local media outlets,” Hsu said.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
Australia has passed the News Media Bargaining Code, which provides a mechanism to facilitate negotiations and settle disputes between news outlets and international digital platforms, he said.
The Ministry of Digital Affairs, which is tasked with addressing issues related to the pricing of news content published online, should inform the committee about what it plans to do next, he said.
Hsu proposed that 10 percent of the Administration of Digital Industries’ budget, or NT$10 million (US$320,410), be frozen until a detailed report on the matter is submitted to the committee.
Administration Director-General Leu Jang-hwa (呂正華) told the committee that the ministry is building a mechanism to facilitate communication between news outlets and international digital platforms following a interdepartmental meeting held at the Executive Yuan.
“Earlier this month, representatives from Google met with news outlets in Taiwan over the pricing of online news content. The Executive Yuan hopes that there is specific progress on this front. We will invite both sides to have another meeting at the end of this month,” Leu said.
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