• News content returned to Facebook in Australia on Friday morning, a week after the platform banned it from being shared on the platform.
• News was reinstated after the Senate passed controversial legislation which could compel Facebook and Google to pay for news content.
• But tweaks to the legislation appear to have softened Facebook’s stance, and major publishers are already penning deals with the company.
• Visit Business Insider Australia’s homepage for more stories.

News content has returned to Facebook in Australia, a week after the social media juggernaut blocked users from accessing journalism in response to controversial new legislation put forward by the Federal Government.

As of Friday morning, news content from outlets including the ABC, The Sydney Morning Herald, News.com.au, and this very masthead is visible and accessible to Facebook’s millions-strong Australian user base.

The development came after the Senate passed an amended version of the News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code on Wednesday, signing off on legislation which could compel Facebook, and search giant Google, to remunerate local news organisations for journalism shared on their platforms.

The legislation threatens to compel Facebook and Google into mandatory arbitration with news outlets should they not come to independent payment agreements, and it was that provision which led Facebook to withdraw news from its Australian platform entirely.

But amendments to the legislation, announced by Treasurer Josh Frydenberg on Tuesday, appear to provide some leeway to Facebook and Google.

Under the revamped Code, Frydenberg will be able to “designate” those digital giants as subject to the new laws if they do not sign commercial deals with Australian news outlets.

But the Code provides a 30-day notice period with any platform targeted by the Federal Government, providing space for Facebook to hash out independent deals — or simply ban news content again, should the company decide it doesn’t want to negotiate.

In addition, the rehashed Code will see mandatory arbitration used only as a “last resort” when “good faith” negotiations grind to a halt.

In a Tuesday statement, Facebook confirmed those tweaks would see news content returning to Australia.

“We’re pleased that we’ve been able to reach an agreement with the Australian government and appreciate the constructive discussions we’ve had with Treasurer Frydenberg and [Communications Minister Paul Fletcher] over the past week,” the company said.

As news returned to the platform on Friday, Facebook revealed that independent Australian publishers Private Media, Schwartz Media, and Solstice Media, had signed letters of intent with the company to hash out commercial agreements.

Those deals will be signed in full within 60 days, Facebook added.

Seven West Media, which operates Channel 7 and the West Australian newspaper, has already unveiled a letter of intent to enter a commercial partnership with Facebook.

“These partnerships continue Facebook’s commitment to the Australian news community,” the company said in a statement, pointing to grants handed to Australian newsrooms over the COVID-19 pandemic and increased funding for fact-checkers in the local market.

Given today’s reemergence of major players in Australia’s journalism industry, it is likely other news outlets will soon seek to lock down their own private agreements with the social media titan.

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