Agcom dictates the rules to the big names on the web: «Fair compensation to publishers up to 70% of advertising revenues»

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A mechanism of revenue sharing between publishers and platforms. And therefore to Facebook or Google – to give two examples – which allow access to online information content, publishers will be able to ask, relying on Agcom in the event of “no agreement”, a figure of up to 70% of estimated advertising revenues for those contents (as a calculation basis on which to decline other criteria, however), net of redirected traffic (the part of business generated by the traffic that then moves from the platforms to the publishers’ sites will be subtracted from the amount).

With yesterday’s OK from Agcom – with a majority with Commissioner Elisa Giomi voting against – to the regulation «on the matter of determining fair compensation for the online use of journalistic publications, in implementation of art. 43-bis of the law on copyright», explains a note from the Authority, the game with the giants of the web on the age-old issue of fair compensation for publishers for the use of their articles by part of online platforms, including social networks, with the possibility for authors to receive a share of the proceeds.

Behind it there are years of discussion on the valuegap: the subtraction of financial resources from advertising moving inexorably towards online platforms that use traditional media content. Over time, some projects (Google News Initiative or Google News Showcase, for example) have been put in place as a result of the agreement between platforms and publishers. But the knot remained on the table. Now Agcom has given the green light to that set of rules on the basis of which the Authority, if called into question, will determine the compensation in the event of a dispute between the publishers who request payment and the various Google or Facebook.

«It is a further piece of a regulation that respects the autonomy of the parties. The parties are left free within a negotiation. It is certainly an original mechanism and we believe it is on its way to being one best practices at a European level», comments al Only 24 Hours the Agcom president, Giacomo Lasorella. “In a procedural context with certain times and methods, it will finally be possible, even in the digital ecosystem, to initiate and conclude fair negotiations, guaranteeing the necessary rebalancing in the distribution of product value, without jeopardizing the free expression of Internet users”, he for his part declared the president of Fieg (publishers) Andrea Riffeser.

From now on, therefore, for the online use of journalistic publications, the platforms will have to stipulate specific contracts to determine how much of their advertising revenues deriving from this use must be paid to the publishers. The same goes for those who produce press reviews which, on the basis of the relevant turnover, will have to remunerate the publishers.