U.K. Competition Regulator Releases Interim Report on Digital Marketing Study
The U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is conducting a study on whether Google and Facebook’s market power has stifled competition in the digital market. CMA’s interim report supports the finding that the duopoly dominates the digital advertising market, depriving ... Read More
Australia’s Government Requires Negotiations Between Platforms and News Publishers
The Australian government will implement several of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) recommendations to increase competition and mitigate digital platforms’ market power, giving news media companies a chance to address the power imbalance. Notably, the Australian government will ... Read More
Senators Rand Paul and Cory Booker Co-Sponsor Safe Harbor Bill
This week, Senators Rand Paul (R-KY) and Cory Booker (D-NJ) announced their co-sponsorship of the “Journalism Competition and Preservation Act” (JCPA), known as the Safe Harbor Bill. The JCPA was introduced in the Senate (S. 1700) in June, while a ... Read More
Congress Fails to Remove Section 230 Language from the USMCA
Following reports that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) had requested the removal of broad immunities for online platforms from the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), the Speaker noted on December 10 that the protections would not be removed from the agreement ... Read More
Alliance Submits Comments on Proposed CCPA Regulations with the California Attorney General
On December 6, the News Media Alliance submitted comments with the California Attorney General on the AG’s proposed rules to implement the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) that will go into effect on January 1, 2020. The CCPA will limit ... Read More
French News Outlets Launch Official Complaint Against Google’s Refusal to License Content
On November 20, a group of French media companies filed an official complaint with the country’s competition regulator over Google’s refusal to pay for rights to display news content. The complaint comes months after France became the first country to ... Read More
Google News Shutdown Not Such a Bad Thing in Spain: Many Publishers Witnessed Increased Traffic to News Sites
On Nov. 14, the News Media Alliance published an analysis on the impact to Spanish news publishers of the closure of Google News in Spain in 2014. Opponents of the European Union’s recently-adopted Publishers’ Right have used Spain’s experience with ... Read More
States’ Attorneys General Expand Investigation Into Google’s Anti-Competitive Behaviors
A number of Attorneys General are expanding their antitrust investigation of Google to include the company’s search practices and their Android operations, according to reports. The investigation, which includes 50 Attorneys General representing 48 states, the District of Columbia, and ... Read More
California AG Sues Facebook for Failure to Cooperate In Privacy Investigation
On November 6, California’s Attorney General announced that he had opened an investigation into Facebook’s privacy practices, but that the platform had not been cooperating with his office in the investigation. The AG filed a lawsuit against Facebook for documents ... Read More
Senators Introduce Bill to Increase Online Transparency and Prevent Filter Bubbles
On November 1, five senators — John Thune (R-SD), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), and Mark Warner (D-VA) — introduced the Filter Bubble Transparency Act. The bill would require that online companies that collect data from ... Read More
Facebook Launches Facebook News in the United States
On October 25, Facebook introduced Facebook News to some users in the United States. The News Tab will offer a new way for users to access news content on the platform, allowing users to control and personalize the news they ... Read More
Facebook to Launch News Tab on Friday, October 25
On October 23, Facebook Chairman and CEO Mark Zuckerberg stated during a congressional hearing that the company would be launching its News Tab later in the week. The company spokesperson later confirmed that the new initiative to support high-quality journalism ... Read More
The Alliance Commends the Passage of the CASE Act in the House
The News Media Alliance commends the House of Representatives for passing H.R. 2426, the “Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act of 2019” (CASE Act) on October 22. The House adopted the bill by an overwhelming vote of 410-6. The CASE ... Read More
Congress Continues Its Hearings on Dominant Online Platforms
On Oct. 18, the House Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and Administrative Law held its third hearing on dominant online platforms titled, “Online Platforms and Market Power, Part 3: The Role of Data and Privacy in Competition.” The witnesses included FTC ... Read More
Congress Holds a Hearing on Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act
On October 16, the House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology and the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce held a hearing titled “Fostering a Healthier Internet to Protect Consumers.” The hearing focused on Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act ... Read More
In Lieu of Newspapers, Starbucks Begins Offering Free Digital News Access
Starbucks announced on October 1 that, in lieu of selling print newspapers in their stores, they will instead offer free digital access to several news sources for a limited time. The News Media Alliance worked with the company to help ... Read More
Facebook Settles a Lawsuit by Advertisers Alleging Inflated Video Viewing Data
On October 4, Facebook and a group of advertisers who purchased video ads on Facebook’s platforms filed a proposed class action settlement resolving a case that has been in litigation since 2016. The case concerns Facebook’s alleged overstating of average ... Read More
Google Refusing to Pay Publishers in France following the Implementation of the EU Copyright Directive
Google has opted out of paying publishers in France for news results in Google Search, an executive announced on September 25. France, which is the first country to implement Article 15 of the new European Union Copyright Directive nationally, had ... Read More
House Judiciary Begins Antitrust Investigation Into Google Parent Alphabet
The House Judiciary Committee on September 13 informed Alphabet CEO Larry Page that the company was under investigation regarding competition in digital markets. Page, whose company is the parent of Google and YouTube, among others, was asked to provide a ... Read More
News Media Alliance Requests Germany to Extend the EU Publishers’ Right to Non-EU Publishers during Implementation
On September 6, the News Media Alliance joined four other news media organizations to request the German Government to extend the protections created by Article 15 of the newly approved EU Copyright Directive to non-EU publishers. Article 15 of the ... Read More
Alliance Hosts Congressional Fly-In to Advocate for Passage of the Journalism Competition & Preservation Act
On Tuesday, September 10, the Alliance is hosting a Congressional fly-in to advocate for the passage of the “Journalism Competition and Preservation Act.” Executives representing Alliance member companies will meet with Senators and Representatives on Capitol Hill throughout the day ... Read More
DOJ, FTC Initiate Antitrust Investigations Into Tech Platforms
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has requested that Alphabet, the parent company of Google, turn over all information they have related to previous antitrust investigations conducted both in the U.S. and abroad, according to a filing by the Securities and ... Read More
House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee to Hold Hearing on Data Privacy and Tech Competition
On Thursday, September 12, the House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee will hold a hearing titled “Online Platforms and Market Power, Part 3: The Role of Data and Privacy in Competition” regarding the roles data and privacy play in helping or hindering ... Read More
State Attorneys General Join Together in a Major Antitrust Probe of Google and Facebook
On September 6, the New York Attorney General announced that New York is leading a bipartisan, multistate investigation of Facebook’s dominant role in the digital marketplace. New York’s Facebook probe is joined by Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, ... Read More
The Alliance Responds to Facebook’s Reported News Content Licensing Plans
On August 9, the News Media Alliance released a statement following reports that Facebook is planning to license content from news publishers, including headlines and previews. In the statement, Alliance President and CEO David Chavern welcomes the news but notes ... Read More
House Leaders Call for the Removal of Section 230 from USMCA
On August 6, the Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) and Ranking Member Greg Walden (R-OR) sent a letter to the U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, expressing concerns about the inclusion of broad immunities ... Read More
NMA and CNPA Calls on Californian Lawmakers to Amend CCPA
On August 6, the News Media Alliance and the California News Publishers Association asked news publishers to support amendments to the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) to protect access to high-quality journalism in California. While the law, set to go ... Read More
Representative DeSaulnier Calls Attention to the Demise of Local News
On July 31, Representative Mark DeSaulnier, one of the co-sponsors of H.R. 2054, the “Journalism Competition and Preservation Act,” participated in a panel on the big tech’s impact on local journalism in San Francisco, CA. The panel, organized by the ... Read More
Senate Holds a Copyright Office Oversight Hearing, Plans Roundtables on Office Modernization
On July 30, the Senate Intellectual Property Subcommittee held a U.S. Copyright Office oversight hearing with the recently appointed Register of Copyrights Karyn Temple as the sole witness. During the hearing, Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC), Chairman of the Subcommittee, noted ... Read More
EU Court Holds Websites Jointly Liable for Data Privacy Violations when Using Social Widgets
On July 29, the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) found that website operators are liable for data protection violations that arise from the use of third-party widgets and plug-ins, such as Facebook’s “Like” and “Share” buttons. The ... Read More
Support a Safe Harbor for News Publishers to Negotiate a Fairer Deal with Online Platforms
On July 29, the Alliance asked our members to publish an op-ed and to reach out to their Members of Congress during the recess to express support for a limited, one-time safe harbor for news publishers to collectively negotiate with ... Read More
House Republicans Introduce Legislation to Amend Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act
On July 26, Representatives Paul Gosar (R-AZ), Mark Meadows (R-NC), and Steve King (R-IA) introduced a bill that would amend Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act to remove legal protections from online platforms that remove “objectionable” but not illegal ... Read More
