Labour’s Starmer suggests ‘media bargaining code’ for tech platforms

Sir Keir Starmer says he will take a different stance on big tech platforms paying for news content if he becomes Prime Minister.

In a move that echoes recent attempts in Australia and Canada to pass laws forcing Big Tech companies to pay news organisations for their online content, the Labour leader has suggested creating a “media bargaining code”.

In an opinion piece for the News Media Association’s Journalism Matters campaign, the Labour leader said: “Big tech platforms now dominate the online advertising market, to the detriment of consumers, potential rivals, and newspapers.”

He added: “In the platform age, it’s only fair that creators are fairly rewarded for their work and not just the platforms that profit from it. That’s why we support moves to make platforms pay for news content and to give newspapers and publishers greater control of their data and content.”

Starmer also said that the Conservatives’ refusal to “engage adequately” with local newspapers and radio was “short sighted and disrespectful”, and additionally stated Labour would free the BBC from “party political meddling” and oppose the privatisation of Channel 4.

Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan, who was reappointed to the post last week by new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, has said she would re-evaluate the plan to privatise Channel 4.