Publisher groups have delivered a qualified welcome to outlines of Australia’s proposed News Bargaining Incentive, while the basis on which it will be calculated is being questioned.

With fears the successor scheme will provoke the ire of US president Donald Trump by upsetting digital and search giants, there are reports technology firms Meta and Google are already minimising the Australian revenue they declare.

Nine’s Australian Financial Review reported criticisms that the technology giants “seem to pay very little tax on the huge amount of revenue they generate in Australia”. The AFR said “almost $11 billion” had been transferred to offshore entities in service fees and reseller payments over the past year, while the tech companies “only paid just over $140 million in tax”.

The comments came as prime minister Anthony Albanese announced a plan which would have US tech firms pay 2.25 per cent of their Australian revenue if they refuse voluntary deals to pay Australian media for article links. Affected are platforms with more than $250 million in annual Australian revenue. Meta said the proposed incentive was “nothing more than a digital services tax”.

The proposal – a successor to the News Media Bargaining Code – has been welcomed by publishers.

A joint response from the Local & Independent News Association and the Community Broadcasting Association of Australia described the Code’s intent as commendable.

LINA said it supported the actions to hold tech platforms accountable to the communities they profit from and welcomes measures to increase the transparency of deals between platforms and industry. “The News Bargaining Incentive is a new attempt to bring platforms to the table to negotiate with news publishers, with the government seeking to return funds to parts of the news media industry as compensation for a loss of advertising income caused by digital disruption.”

However, it says the News Bargaining Incentive, as currently drafted, does not address underlying issues in the News Media Bargaining Code on which it is based. “Commercially focused eligibility requirements create barriers to participation for small publishers and volunteer-based community media, further entrenching the status quo in a media landscape that is already one of the most concentrated in the world. Funding is needed not only to prop up existing publishers, but to regenerate a battered news industry and better serve Australian communities with relevant and reliable news services.”

LINA says the News Bargaining Incentive may generate revenue through levies on technology companies, which “may be more inclined to absorb the higher costs in Australia rather than risk setting a precedent that could influence similar regulatory approaches in other countries.”

Executive director Claire Stuchbery said LINA acknowledged the need to support journalists across Australia, “especially after a decade marked by newsroom closures.

“But, we call on the government to allocate a percentage of funds raised through a levy to grant programmes and other measures that enable growth in the news media industry, bringing new and diverse voices into the public dialogue and addressing news deserts.”

She said the NBI presented “a rare chance” for government to move the needle on media diversity and public interest journalism without dipping into its own pocket.

“Let’s hope they reflect long enough to do so.”

Country Press Australia – which represents more than 240 regional and community news publications and their digital news services across the

Country – said the proposed legislation was “an important step toward restoring fairness between Australian news publishers and major global digital platforms”.

President Damian Morgan (pictured) said CPA recognised the work of prime minister Anthony Albanese, communications minister Anika Wells and assistant treasurer Daniel Mulino in progressing the draft legislation and acknowledged “the constructive engagement that has occurred with the regional news sector through the policy development process.

“This is fundamentally about fairness, but it is also about truth, facts and the future of informed communities,” he said. “Professional journalism costs money to produce. Large digital platforms derive value from that journalism, but they do not employ the local reporters, editors and photographers who create it. The News Bargaining Incentive is designed to encourage fair commercial agreements so Australian journalism can remain sustainable.”

He said every community deserved access to reliable, professionally produced information. “Every community deserves journalists who are prepared to ask questions, check facts, attend meetings, report decisions and give local people a voice.”

While acknowledging “the genuine contribution technology companies have

made to modern life”, and that Google had “continued to engage constructively with Australian news publishers”, he said “the responsibility cannot fall on one company alone.

“All major digital platforms that derive value from Australian journalism must accept their responsibility. No company should be able to benefit from the credibility, relevance and public value of professional news while avoiding a fair contribution to the cost of producing it.”

CPA’s position was that it was important the final legislation encouraged genuine commercial deals and did not create an incentive for platforms to reduce, remove or downgrade access to Australian news. “Reliable news must remain visible and accessible to Australians,” Damien Morgan said. “The answer cannot be for platforms to avoid responsibility by making trusted news harder to find.”