Changes to Australia’s News Bargaining Incentive broadly address concerns of regional publishers, but it will take the detail of the legislation and eligibility rules to tell whether it will deliver meaningful support.

A government factsheet suggests a stronger offset for deals with smaller publishers, an increase in the minimum number of agreements required to fully acquit a platform’s liability, additional recognition for regional journalism and a grants programme for publishers and start-ups below the existing $150,000 annual revenue threshold.

Country Press Australia president Damian Morgan (pictured) said the announcement appeared to recognise several concerns raised by regional publishers: “The broad direction is encouraging, particularly the stronger incentive for platforms to negotiate with smaller publishers and the recognition of the additional costs and importance of regional journalism,” he said.

“However, we will need to see the legislation and the detailed operation of the scheme before determining whether these changes will achieve their intended purpose.”

An increase in the small publisher offset from 170 to 200 per cent could create a stronger commercial incentive for digital platforms to enter agreements with regional and independent publishers.

“The effectiveness of that measure will depend on how a small publisher is defined, what proportion of a platform’s expenditure can receive the higher offset and whether the final framework prevents support from remaining concentrated among a small number of major media groups,” Morgan said, with CPA noting a proposed increase in the number of agreements required to “fully acquit” a platform’s liability.

CPA would also examine closely the proposed grants programme for publishers and start-ups that do not meet the $150,000 annual revenue threshold. “We understand the government’s desire to encourage new publishing services, innovation and journalism in communities that may currently be underserved,” he said. “However, public funding intended to support journalism should be directed towards the creation of professional and sustainable newsrooms.” CPA’s submission supported retaining the $150,000 revenue threshold as an important integrity safeguard and argued that public support should prioritise news businesses that employ journalists, produce original public-interest journalism and meet recognised professional and editorial standards.

“Volunteers can make an important contribution to community life, but volunteer publishing should not be treated as a substitute for employing professional journalists,” he said.

“There would be little public benefit in creating an ongoing funding stream for organisations that rely predominantly on unpaid labour and have no clear pathway towards employing journalists or becoming financially sustainable.” A workable compromise could be a time-limited pathway into professional journalism, which required grant recipients to:

• primarily produce original public-interest journalism;
• employ, or use the grant to employ, at least one journalist at lawful professional rates;
• direct the majority of grant funding to journalism employment and editorial production;
• meet recognised professional standards, editorial independence and complaints-handling requirements;
• demonstrate a credible plan to reach the existing revenue threshold within a defined period; and
• ensure volunteers supplement rather than replace paid journalists.