Media Bargaining Law Stalled for Nearly a Year; Digital Development Ministry Launches "Digital Revenue Sharing Platform" to Seek Consensus

Taiwan's Digital Development Ministry is introducing a "Digital Revenue Sharing Platform" to mediate long-standing conflicts between multinational tech companies and domestic news organizations. The core issue revolves around the free use of news content by platforms like Google and Meta, while these companies dominate the digital advertising market, leaving media outlets struggling to monetize their work.

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Canada and Australia's experiences in implementing media bargaining show that such practices can be difficult to implement. The Digital Development Ministry is finding solutions through technology and business models. Taiwan is the first country in the world to attempt a 'digital revenue sharing platform.' This new approach requires considerable communication and negotiation.

Legislative efforts to establish a "media bargaining law" have faced significant hurdles. Drafts proposed by lawmakers from all three major political parties have been pending legislative review for nearly a year, with the relevant committees deferring decisions to further consultations. Concerns linger about potential retaliatory actions by platforms, similar to Meta's past decisions to block news content in Canada and Australia, which resulted in a lose-lose-lose situation for readers, media, and platforms.

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Forcing digital platforms to share revenue could lead to platforms like Meta blocking news, resulting in a lose-lose-lose situation for readers, media, and platforms. I advocate for temporarily halting the review of media bargaining draft laws and allowing the Digital Development Ministry to establish a revenue sharing platform through donations to build convention and consensus.

Recognizing these challenges, the Digital Development Ministry is prioritizing a collaborative approach. Minister of Digital Development, Huang Yu-ching (formerly deputy minister), noted that Taiwan is pioneering the "digital revenue sharing platform" model. This approach seeks to resolve disputes through technological and commercial solutions rather than solely through mandatory legislation. The ministry aims to build consensus through extensive communication and negotiation among media, platforms, and relevant government agencies, requesting time from the legislature to develop this unique model.

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There is absolutely no consensus among the proposed versions from various committee members. The Digital Development Ministry has already established a digital revenue sharing platform, with over 10 media outlets agreeing to participate. We should give the Digital Development Ministry space and time to establish relevant regulations and have them managed by an independent and impartial institution through a fund, to avoid government intervention and differentiate from the mandatory bargaining and taxation concerns of the United States.

Several lawmakers have expressed support for this platform-based approach. Legislator Hsu Chih-chieh advocates for a voluntary system, suggesting that platforms contribute through donations to establish a precedent and understanding. Legislator Fan Yun agrees, emphasizing the need to give the ministry space to develop the platform and its associated regulations, ideally managed by an independent body to avoid government overreach. Conversely, Legislator Wang Hung-wei and Legislator Hung Meng-kai stress the urgency of addressing the market imbalance, where large digital platforms capture a disproportionate share of advertising revenue, potentially leading to a decline in quality journalism and the proliferation of clickbait content. They urge for a balanced approach that ensures fair compensation for news content creators.

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The current situation where large digital platforms take 60 to 80 percent of advertising revenue, preventing the news industry from sharing in the profits, has created a severely distorted market. It is necessary for the Legislative Yuan to amend the law. I also criticize the Digital Development Ministry's active coordination of industry joint subscription platforms for starting too late. I hope that before the final deliberations, an Executive Yuan version can be proposed for joint discussion.