Facebook's parent company Meta will not be renegotiating its news media bargaining deal with local publishers when it expires in April, instead opting to remove the Facebook News tab in Australia.

For now Google is indicating it is still onboard, but that may simply reflect its contracts having longer to run. It it believed to have signed several 4-5 year deals. If Google's posture changes as that contract completion gets closer, get ready for an almighty argument. The News Bargaining Code that the previous government basically strong-armed the digital giants into is understood to have been worth north of $200M to the publishers since it came in.

For the new government it's a headache on the horizon. Given the complicated relationships Australian politicians have with publishers the last place any administration wants to be is between a media company and a bucket of blood.

Today's news, which will also see the deprecation of Facebook News in the US, follows similar moves by the platform in the UK, France and Germany last year.

Users will still be able to view links to news articles on Facebook, with news publishers to retain access to their Facebook accounts and pages. This differs from the company's 2021 response to the News Media Bargaining Code, which saw the Meta restrict all publication of news on its platform.

Meta attributed the decision to declines user engagement with Facebook News, stating that the decision would "not impact the terms under our existing Facebook News agreements with publishers in Australia, France and Germany".

The company's existing news agreements, which have delivered hundreds of millions of dollars in funding to local publishers to major publishers including Nine Entertainment, Seven West Media, News Corp and the Guardian, are set to expire in April.

"To ensure that we continue to invest in products and services that drive user engagement, we will not enter into new commercial deals for traditional news content in these countries and will not offer new Facebook products specifically for news publishers in the future," the company said in a statement.

The decision comes as publishers have been mounting pressure on the federal government to force Meta to negotiate the payment terms set out under the News Media Bargaining Code.

"Meta’s decision to no longer pay for news content in a number of jurisdictions represents a dereliction of its commitment to the sustainability of Australian news media," said Minister for Communications, Michelle Rowland.

Rowland said the government would be seeking advice from Treasury and the ACCC to "work through all available options under the News Media Bargaining Code".

"The Government will continue to engage with news publishers and platforms through this process," she said.

Major Australian publishers have been quick to respond to the news, with Seven West Media chief executive, James Warburton stipulating that the decision underlined the need for Meta to be designated under the News Media Bargaining Code.

"The case has not only been made but proven and we welcome Ministers Jones and Rowland’s commitment to the News Media Bargaining Code. We will work constructively with the ACCC and Treasury to ensure their designation," he said.

As of August 2022, Australian publishers were understood to have pocketed upwards of $200 million in payments from Meta and Google, with $35 million of that funding having landed with Nine Entertainment in 2021 alone.

Nine Entertainment boss Mike Sneesby said Meta's decision failed to recognise the "significant and increasing" value of Nine's journalism to its platforms.

"Regardless of the Meta announcement today, the value created on their platform from the use of Nine’s IP is both unquestionable and growing and we strongly believe Meta should negotiate in good faith around the fair compensation for that value exchange," he said. "We will continue to robustly advocate that these deals are in the national interest and the arguments that led to the code in the first place remain as strong as ever."

News Corp Australasia Executive Chairman Michael Miller accused Meta of "attempting to mislead Australians" by framing the decision to stop news payments against the closure of the Facebook News tab.

"The vast majority of news on Facebook and Meta is and will continue to be consumed outside this product," he said. "Meta's decision will directly impact the viability of Australia's many small and regional publishers and this is a pressing issue for the government to confront."

Peak body the free-to-air television industry, Free TV, was also quick to emphasise the Government's responsibility to ensure that news media business were fairly renumerated for their content.

CEO Bridget Fair described the news as "disappointing but not surprising".

"We call on the Government to immediately designate all Meta platforms - Facebook, Instagram and Reels - under the News Media Bargaining Code, and require it to pay a fair price for the news content shared widely on its platforms," she said.

Free TV has previously called on the ACCC to curb Meta's market dominance during its Digital Platforms Inquiry.

Regional publisher, ACM labelled Meta’s decision to abandon its support for news on Facebook as "outrageous".

“This is a hugely disappointing decision and a sad day for news and journalism in Australia, in particular the trusted local news from ACM that keeps regional Australians informed and connected,” ACM Managing Director Tony Kendall said. “Meta’s move will significantly affect our business. It will also, sadly, fuel the explosion of fake news and other junk proliferating on social media. We hope that Australians who want actual news in their so-called “newsfeed” will seriously consider boycotting Facebook.”

Kendall urged the government to "take immediate steps to cease all advertising on any of Meta’s platforms" by its departments, agencies, MPs and senators, adding that it should encourage advertisers to do the same.

"As we saw in 2021 when news for Australians on Facebook was blocked overnight in a major dummy spit over introduction of the code, today’s decision makes clear Meta’s contempt for its Australian users and their trust in news from their local newspaper,” he said.