Big Tech Practices Threaten India's Digital News Landscape: I&B Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw Calls For Urgent Policy Reforms
1 month, 3 weeks ago

Big Tech Practices Threaten India's Digital News Landscape: I&B Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw Calls For Urgent Policy Reforms

ABP News  

Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw highlighted the growing challenges posed by Big Tech to credible journalism and digital media platforms. Celebrating the power of Press: upholding democracy and freedom 📍At the National Press Day event pic.twitter.com/ZSbsPDyzhP — Ashwini Vaishnaw November 16, 2024 “The rapid spread of fake news is a big threat not only to the media because it undermines trust but it’s also a big threat to democracy,” Vaishnaw stated. A Strained Ecosystem Digital news platforms have long contended with unfair revenue-sharing models, where tech giants profit substantially from publishers' content while offering little in return. The coming months will be critical as stakeholders await concrete steps toward safeguarding the nation’s digital news ecosystem from the growing influence of Big Tech and evolving technologies.

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History of this topic

Big tech should compensate traditional media for its content: Ashwini Vaishnaw
Trending News
1 month, 3 weeks ago

Big tech should compensate traditional media for its content: Ashwini Vaishnaw

India TV News  

Information and Broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw addressed the pressing challenges that the media and press face in today's technology-driven media ecosystem on National Press Day. Vaishnaw stated that the efforts put forth by conventional media in content creation need to be properly recognised and rewarded. Vaishnaw called for addressing this imbalance, arguing that the contributions of conventional media in producing content …

I&B Minister cautions Big Tech: Curb fake news or face revision of 'safe harbour'
1 month, 3 weeks ago

I&B Minister cautions Big Tech: Curb fake news or face revision of 'safe harbour'

India Today  

Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw on Saturday spotlighted four critical challenges facing news media, calling for greater accountability and fairness from Big Tech. Speaking at an event organised by the Press Council of India in Delhi to mark National Press Day, the Union Minister listed fake news, algorithmic bias, artificial intelligence, and fair compensation as the top …

Compensation from Big Tech key media issue: I&B minister Ashwini Vaishnaw
1 month, 3 weeks ago

Compensation from Big Tech key media issue: I&B minister Ashwini Vaishnaw

Hindustan Times  

Disinformation and fake news online, and fair compensation for news publishers are two of the four biggest challenges faced by the news media today, information and broadcasting minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on the occasion of National Press Day on Saturday. Vaishnaw said online platforms, by shying away from responsibility for the content, had let riots occur in developed countries and …

Transforming India's Economy: The Power of Digital Public Infrastructure
2 months, 2 weeks ago

Transforming India's Economy: The Power of Digital Public Infrastructure

Live Mint  

The article highlights the importance of digitalization in transforming India's economy. It emphasizes the role of open platforms and collaboration between the public and private sectors in building a robust digital infrastructure. The government's initiatives, such as the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), demonstrate the government's commitment to fostering a digital economy.

Anti-India narrative on social media: Why it’s time for government to counter online negativity
3 months, 4 weeks ago

Anti-India narrative on social media: Why it’s time for government to counter online negativity

Firstpost  

A wave of anti-India sentiment is flooding social media, distorting our global image. India can no longer afford silence and has to reclaim its narrative on the world stage Lately, social media has evolved into a platform where global narratives are created, shaped, and spread at turbo speed. A recent example is the “What’s wrong with India?” campaign on social …

California is trying to force Big Tech to pay for news. What can we learn from Australia and Canada?
5 months, 2 weeks ago

California is trying to force Big Tech to pay for news. What can we learn from Australia and Canada?

LA Times  

A man carries a copy of the Sydney Morning Herald in 2012. If the News Media Bargaining Code became law, Google Australia Managing Director Mel Silva said in a Senate hearing, the company would have “no real choice” but to stop making Google Search available in Australia. Rod Sims, an economist and former chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer …

Meet on revenue-sharing between Big Tech, online news publishers today
6 months, 4 weeks ago

Meet on revenue-sharing between Big Tech, online news publishers today

Hindustan Times  

The ministry of information and broadcasting will hold an interministerial meeting on Wednesday to discuss the dominance of Big Tech companies in digital advertising and its disproportionate impact on digital news publishers and a possible legal framework to ensure a level playing field, according to a memorandum reviewed by HT. Meet on revenue-sharing between Big Tech, online news publishers today …

Setting the rules in disputes over apps
10 months ago

Setting the rules in disputes over apps

Hindustan Times  

Last week, Google delisted the apps of 10 Indian businesses from its proprietary app store. This incident, which saw some apps relisted after mediated discussions, highlights the need for a thoughtful resolution of business disputes in the digital economy, increasingly contested on the notion of “fairness”. The margins-led fight between apps and their distributors has many analogues, such as telecom …

’Big Tech monopolies’ a key concern for govt, says Rajeev Chandrasekhar
11 months ago

’Big Tech monopolies’ a key concern for govt, says Rajeev Chandrasekhar

Live Mint  

Expressing concern over the monopolistic dominance of ad-tech companies like Google and Facebook, Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Wednesday said the revenue-sharing model between digital news publishers and Big Tech is tilted towards the latter and has emerged as a key concern for the government. The minister, who was speaking during the Digital News …

DNPA Awards 2024: ‘Asymmetry between digital publishers & Big Tech’, says Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar
11 months ago

DNPA Awards 2024: ‘Asymmetry between digital publishers & Big Tech’, says Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar

Hindustan Times  

Union minister of state for electronics and information technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Wednesday said there is an asymmetry between the digital news publishers and Big Tech platforms such as Facebook and Google over the revenue sharing model. Chandrasekhar assured that the Digital India Act, to be rolled out after the 2024 Lok Sabha election, will deal with the ‘very pronounced …

Indian publishers getting step motherly treatment by big tech as no directions from government in place
1 year, 2 months ago

Indian publishers getting step motherly treatment by big tech as no directions from government in place

Hindustan Times  

The changing habits of information seekers regarding internet search engines call for an intervention by the Government of India as a watchdog, to ensure fair play between the content provider and the big tech companies and Meta. The issue on the table is the B2B commercial relationship between the content supplier and these big tech companies and Meta, which spread …

From Orientalism to Digital Leadership - News18
1 year, 4 months ago

From Orientalism to Digital Leadership - News18

News 18  

For centuries, Western perception of countries like India has been coloured by orientalist narratives, an idea embedded deep within the philosophical works of thinkers like Edward Said in Orientalism. The world watched in amazement as Germany’s Federal Minister for Digital and Transport, Volker Wissing, used India’s Unified Payments Interface to pay a vegetable vendor, illustrating India’s prowess in digital public …

Publisher-platform imbalances need fixing
1 year, 5 months ago

Publisher-platform imbalances need fixing

The Hindu  

How can our news media be safeguarded against the market power of domineering search engines, social media giants, and other so-called ‘big tech’ players mediating the digital economy? Such dependencies arise from platforms straddling multiple roles in digital news markets, especially as mediators in the search for online news content, and as providers of infrastructure to publishers to participate in …

If Australia can do it, so can India: Australian MP Backs Digital India Act
1 year, 5 months ago

If Australia can do it, so can India: Australian MP Backs Digital India Act

ABP News  

New Delhi: India can also bring in Australia-like legislation for revenue-sharing between big tech firms and news media outlets, Australian MP Paul Fletcher said on Tuesday. In 2021, Australia came up with a law - News Media Bargaining Code - that mandated big tech firms like Facebook to share revenues with news outlets for their news content shared on tech …

MeitY mystery: Consultation process for Digital India Bill still opaque
1 year, 9 months ago

MeitY mystery: Consultation process for Digital India Bill still opaque

The Hindu  

Published : Mar 23, 2023 10:45 IST - 7 MINS READ The Union government’s ambitious vision of Digital India and its goals of “Catalysing New India’s Techade” are well known. The Bill will also touch upon the idea of “discretionary moderation of fake news” by social media platforms as well as “content monetisation rules for platform-generated and user-generated content”. “The …

Rajeev Chandrasekhar promises to address imbalance in digital news monetisation
1 year, 11 months ago

Rajeev Chandrasekhar promises to address imbalance in digital news monetisation

Hindustan Times  

In a bid to address the “disproportionate imbalance” in the news industry, Union minister of state for electronics and information technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar has called upon Big Tech aggregators to support digital news creators and help the latter with a fair share of the acquired revenue. Union minister of state for electronics and information technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar He was virtually …

India’s top editors’ body slams proposed ‘fake news’ rules
1 year, 11 months ago

India’s top editors’ body slams proposed ‘fake news’ rules

Al Jazeera  

The Editors Guild of India urged the government to scrap the proposed amendment, saying it ‘will result in the censorship of the press’. The Editors Guild of India, India’s premier body for protecting press freedom, has urged the government to reject a proposal to combat fake news on social media, saying it would be akin to censorship. “Determination of fake …

Big money is choking India’s free press — and its democracy
2 years ago

Big money is choking India’s free press — and its democracy

Al Jazeera  

When popular Indian television journalist Ravish Kumar announced his resignation from New Delhi Television Ltd — the country’s oldest private broadcaster — at the end of November, it was a grim reminder of the vanishing independent news media landscape in the world’s largest democracy. Canary in the Indian media mine India’s economic boom since the 1990s has spawned a fast-growing …

India panel recommends digital competition act to rein in Big Tech
2 years ago

India panel recommends digital competition act to rein in Big Tech

The Hindu  

An Indian parliamentary panel on Thursday recommended the government enact a digital competition act to regulate anti-competitive business practices by Big Tech companies on its platforms. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has had strained relations with many large technology companies, and New Delhi has been tightening the regulation of firms such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. "The Committee recommend that …

Big Tech cannot have a free lunch
2 years, 1 month ago

Big Tech cannot have a free lunch

Hindustan Times  

The world over, news businesses battle a common dilemma: With revenues from traditional subscription models dwindling, more organisations want to pivot to sustenance from digital streams, given the surge in online readership and the possibility of expanding to new geographical locations and demographic groups. Yet, the digital media space is dominated by tech giants such as Google and Facebook, often …

Australian experts, Indian publishers discuss way forward in big tech and digital media
2 years, 1 month ago

Australian experts, Indian publishers discuss way forward in big tech and digital media

The Hindu  

Indian publishers and Australian think tank circles exchanged ideas on emerging changes in big tech and digital media relationship at the inaugural edition of the DNPA Dialogues — a webinar hosted by the Digital News Publishers Association — on November 25. Elaborating on social media platforms having a dominant presence, Rod Sims, former Chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer …

DNPA Dialogues, India’s first roundtable on Big Tech and news media, starts on Friday
2 years, 1 month ago

DNPA Dialogues, India’s first roundtable on Big Tech and news media, starts on Friday

The Hindu  

India’s first roundtable on the changing links between Big Tech and digital media will start on Friday, November 25, with the Digital News Publishers Association as the event host. According to DNPA’s release, the session will largely cover antitrust issues in the Big Tech sector and explore how they affect digital media professionals. The Dialogues aim to bring together stakeholders …

Digital India: The Indian way | OPINION
2 years, 4 months ago

Digital India: The Indian way | OPINION

India Today  

The digital policies that are being picked up in India do not really reflect the digital issues that are important from an India perspective. While India is hurtling in an accelerated manner towards an ever-increasing digitalisation of our economy and of our society, we also need to ensure that it is happening the Indian way, supporting the issues that are …

India May Enact Regulations Asking Big Tech to Compensate News Outlets for Their Content
2 years, 5 months ago

India May Enact Regulations Asking Big Tech to Compensate News Outlets for Their Content

News 18  

aceAustralia’s “News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code” has made it compulsory for the Big Tech companies to pay news publishers for showing links on their platforms. Recently, the minister of state for IT and electronics Rajeev Chandrasekhar told the Times of India, that the government is thinking about passing a law requiring tech companies such as Google, Meta, …

Government plans law to make Google, Facebook pay for news | What this means
2 years, 5 months ago

Government plans law to make Google, Facebook pay for news | What this means

India Today  

After Australia, Canada and France, now India is reportedly putting the final touches to a new piece of legislation that would make tech giants like Google and Facebook pay for the news content they display on their platforms. If implemented, the proposed law would compel global tech majors such as Alphabet, Meta, Twitter, and Amazon to pay Indian newspapers and …

Why people are avoiding news; and what must be done to fix things
2 years, 6 months ago

Why people are avoiding news; and what must be done to fix things

Deccan Chronicle  

The 2022 report on digital news consumption shows interesting trends and raises questions. The louder pre-alarm alarm for the news media in India and elsewhere is that not only has trust been declining, interest in news appears to have fallen across the world: a huge plunge from 63 per cent last year to 52 per cent this year. Over the …

Why Canada's Online News Act To Regulate Intermediaries Gives Boost To Indian Digital Publishers
2 years, 7 months ago

Why Canada's Online News Act To Regulate Intermediaries Gives Boost To Indian Digital Publishers

ABP News  

New Delhi: With Canada passing the Online News Act, which will regulate digital news intermediaries and enabled publishers to bargain fair revenue or advertising sharing, the move comes as a boost for Indian newspapers and digital news publishers, media observers feel. Canada's Online News Act has been created with a view to enhancing fairness in the Canadian digital news marketplace. …

Canadian order on intermediaries a big boost for Indian news outlets
2 years, 7 months ago

Canadian order on intermediaries a big boost for Indian news outlets

The Hindu  

A recent Canadian order on news intermediaries like Google has come as a big boost to Indian newspapers and their digital news editions in their fight against the alleged monopolist exploitation of their news content by Google. According to newspaper sources, Google earns a huge amount of According to the Canadian order, an online news Act has been created to …

India’s e-belt-and-road initiative for digital diplomacy
2 years, 8 months ago

India’s e-belt-and-road initiative for digital diplomacy

Live Mint  

As of 2021, India had issued more than 1.3 billion digital identity cards via its Aadhaar platform and over 1.1 billion digital vaccine certificates through its CoWin platform. Aadhaar’s open architecture that allows for scalability and vendor neutrality has already had several countries approaching India to either replicate the model or take note of its technology to develop their own …

The digital future of our country is distinctly being re-imagined
3 years, 4 months ago

The digital future of our country is distinctly being re-imagined

Live Mint  

If you ask a group of people what ‘Digital India’ means to them, it is really interesting to see the variety of responses you get. For some, it is about Indian tech startups—Zomato, Ola, Urban Company, etc, that are redefining how we consume goods or services; for some it’s the legendary tech services companies—TCS, Infosys and the like that have …

Big Tech Is Bending to the Indian Government’s Will
3 years, 4 months ago

Big Tech Is Bending to the Indian Government’s Will

Wired  

As Indian democracy crumbles day upon day under the grasp of Narendra Modi, social media platforms have functioned in lieu of a free press. As Reporters Without Borders recently noted, journalists in India “risk dismissal if they criticize the government.” Since Modi took control in 2014, India’s ranking on the World Press Freedom Index has fallen every year, plateauing at …

The US and India have a lot of work to do on digital cooperation
3 years, 6 months ago

The US and India have a lot of work to do on digital cooperation

Al Jazeera  

As tensions escalate between US social media giants and India’s gov’t, is there a more productive path forward for both? India also stands to gain from more cordial relations with US tech behemoths, said Rahguraman, by helping New Delhi check neighbouring China’s influence at home and abroad, including in the digital domain. “You need an entire office just to deal …

Google News Showcase launched in India with 30 news publishers
3 years, 7 months ago

Google News Showcase launched in India with 30 news publishers

India TV News  

Google has announced that it has rolled out News Showcase in India. The aim is to support news organisations and readers supports news publishers to curate high quality content on Google's News and Discover platforms in the country, connecting readers with the news they need, especially in these tough Covid-19 times. "This builds on News Showcase deals signed by 700 …

INS wants tech giants to pay for news, govt yet to take a call
3 years, 9 months ago

INS wants tech giants to pay for news, govt yet to take a call

India Today  

The ministry of information and broadcasting today clarified that it has "not endorsed" the demand by the Indian Newspaper Society for sharing advertising revenue by techno companies like Google, Facebook, etc., to compensate Indian newspapers for using their content. He was responding to a question of whether the government receives revenue from companies like Google for the Indian news published …

BJP's Sushil Modi seeks law on lines of Australian regulation to make Facebook, Google pay for news
3 years, 9 months ago

BJP's Sushil Modi seeks law on lines of Australian regulation to make Facebook, Google pay for news

Firstpost  

New Delhi: Taking a cue from Australia, India should enact a law to make tech giants such as Facebook and Google pay local publishers of news content, senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi demanded in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. Raising the issue through a Zero Hour mention, the former deputy chief minister of Bihar said, “The government must make Google, …

Enact Laws to Make Google, Facebook Pay for News in India: BJP Leader Sushil Modi in Rajya Sabha
3 years, 9 months ago

Enact Laws to Make Google, Facebook Pay for News in India: BJP Leader Sushil Modi in Rajya Sabha

News 18  

Taking a cue from Australia, India should enact a law to make tech giants such as Facebook and Google pay local publishers of news content, senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi demanded in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. Raising the issue through a Zero Hour mention, the former deputy chief minister of Bihar said, “The government must make Google, Facebook and …

Digital news sites challenge government regulations
3 years, 10 months ago

Digital news sites challenge government regulations

Live Mint  

NEW DELHI: Digital news sites have filed a petition in the Delhi high court challenging the government's rules that define them as intermediaries, along with social media, and give the executive sanction to block or regulate their content, according to a report by legal website Bar and Bench. A bench comprising chief justice DN Patel and justice Jasmeet Singh was …

India must take cue from Australian model of maintaining power balance between Big Tech, digital news media
3 years, 10 months ago

India must take cue from Australian model of maintaining power balance between Big Tech, digital news media

Firstpost  

Journalism is a critically important sector for a healthy democracy. Second, many online users access news stories via digital platforms such as Google, Facebook, and WhatsApp. One concrete step was when, the EU created a new ‘neighbouring right’ in press publications, including ‘snippets,’ expecting that publishers could monetise on their IP-protected content when digital platforms use it. Usually, intellectual property …

India’s new digital media rules will harm open Internet: Mozilla
3 years, 10 months ago

India’s new digital media rules will harm open Internet: Mozilla

The Hindu  

The Indian government recently notified new rules on how digital and social media platforms should operate in the country. Among the several ramifications the new rules will have on “significant social media intermediaries”,, one prominent area that will be hit most hard is end-to-end encryption. “These rules will harm end to end encryption, substantially increase surveillance, promote automated filtering and …

A wolf in watchdog’s clothing: The Hindu Editorial on Indian government’s move to regulate digital media platforms
3 years, 10 months ago

A wolf in watchdog’s clothing: The Hindu Editorial on Indian government’s move to regulate digital media platforms

The Hindu  

The new rules introduced by the Centre last week to regulate all types of digital platforms, with the idea of redressing user grievances and ensuring compliance with the law, are deeply unsettling as they will end up giving the government a good deal of leverage over online news publishers and intermediaries. The three-tier regulatory mechanism will seek to redress complaints …

‘Google Should Pay’: Indian Newspaper Body Asks for 85% Ad Revenue
3 years, 10 months ago

‘Google Should Pay’: Indian Newspaper Body Asks for 85% Ad Revenue

The Quint  

The newspaper body noted how big tech has recently agreed to better compensate publishers in the European Union, France and Australia after many years of publishers across the world raising their concerns on ad revenue and of payment for their content. However, newspaper publishers are seeing their share of the advertising pie shrinking in the digital space, even as Google …

Google, Facebook Should Enable Revenue Sharing for News in India Too, After Australia
3 years, 10 months ago

Google, Facebook Should Enable Revenue Sharing for News in India Too, After Australia

News 18  

Of late, the Australian government struck out at Facebook and Google, two of the biggest global technology giants. More importantly, should Google and Facebook not consider a uniform, universal revenue sharing model for all news publications, which have largely lost out on Time for Big Tech to be proactive? Following the steps taken by the Australian government, reports state that …

Australia's New Legislation To Make Google, Facebook Pay Media Outlets For News Content; Here's All About It
4 years, 1 month ago

Australia's New Legislation To Make Google, Facebook Pay Media Outlets For News Content; Here's All About It

ABP News  

Tech Giants Under Scanner In a first worldwide, Australia has sealed its plan for making giants like Facebook and Google pay to media companies for their news content. The decision aims to protect independent journalism in the time of digital heavy content sharing.As per the laws about to be taken to the parliament, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg revealed the Tech giants …

Government seeks to silence online voices by bringing digital media under I&B Ministry
4 years, 1 month ago

Government seeks to silence online voices by bringing digital media under I&B Ministry

The Hindu  

On November 9, in a surprise move, the Central government issued a notification bringing digital and online media comprising films and audiovisual programmes offered by online content providers and news and current affairs content on online platforms under the purview of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry. In the affidavit, the government’s representative said: “The media includes mainstream electronic media, mainstream …

Content tracking: The Hindu Editorial on government regulation of online news, OTT services
4 years, 1 month ago

Content tracking: The Hindu Editorial on government regulation of online news, OTT services

The Hindu  

The recent decision of the government to bring video streaming services and online news under the ambit of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting was much anticipated, though with some trepidation. Recently, when the Supreme Court asked for its suggestions toward improving the existing self-regulatory mechanism for television media, in a case involving Sudarshan News, the government stated that regulating …

Media regulation that is quite over the top
4 years, 1 month ago

Media regulation that is quite over the top

The Hindu  

The government’s move bringing online news and current affairs portals along with “films and audio-visual programmes made available by online content providers” under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting is as brazen as it is wily. In fact the excuse given by the government for this annexation of the digital media by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting is that …

Concerned Over Obscenity and Fake News, Centre Brings Online Content Under I&B Ministry's Ambit
4 years, 1 month ago

Concerned Over Obscenity and Fake News, Centre Brings Online Content Under I&B Ministry's Ambit

News 18  

All online news portals and live streaming film apps and content will now come under the information and broadcasting ministry. There has also been growing concern over fake news and provocative writings and current events online portals. They fear that the online content being brought under the I&B ministry would mean censorship. The clampdown would be in and those who …

Digital Media, News Aggregators, Agencies Need to Comply with 26% FDI Cap, Says Govt
4 years, 2 months ago

Digital Media, News Aggregators, Agencies Need to Comply with 26% FDI Cap, Says Govt

News 18  

News aggregators, news agencies which supply information to digital media firms and companies uploading news and current affairs on websites will have to comply with the 26 per cent foreign investment cap, the government said on Friday. In August last year, the Union Cabinet approved 26 per cent FDI under government route for uploading/streaming of news and current affairs through …

It’s time for India to regulate the internet’s social media platforms
4 years, 4 months ago

It’s time for India to regulate the internet’s social media platforms

Live Mint  

This has become a pattern now. Allegations fly fast and furious, not made easier by the often hard-to-fathom behaviour of social media platforms themselves, ranging from a top executive holding an objectionable poster of “Brahminical patriarchy” or hiring known political party baiters for positions of responsibility. Social media platforms describe themselves in many ways—as technological innovators or platforms—depending on which …

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