Google Stops Planning for News Showcase Product in Australia

Google halts its project to launch its ‘News Showcase’ product in Australia as the tech giant isn’t sure if it will be effective under the country’s draft News Media Bargaining code.

The organization doesn’t against the code, but the arbitration system discussed in the draft is “unfeasible,” Mel Silva, Google’s vice president in New Zealand and Australia, said in a blog post on Sunday.

Problems include “unfair payment conditions and vague definitions and obligations.”

Previously, Google said it would commence paying selected media companies to display curated content on its news app, earmarking more than $1b for the project over three years.