The tech majors were shell-shocked when the Central Government recently announced that they are bound to pay Indian newspapers and digital news publishers’ a share of revenue for using their original content. It is pertinent to note that Google, which also owns You Tube, Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp owned by Meta, besides, Microsoft, Apple, Twitter and Amazon are forced to follow the order of the government.

Recently, the minister of state for IT and Electronics, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, while announcing the government’s decision said that the, “The market power on digital advertising that is currently being exercised by the Big Tech majors, which places Indian media companies at a position of disadvantage, is an issue that is seriously being examined in the context of new legalisations and rule”. It is perhaps the first official statement by the Indian government on plans to make the global internet giants pay for using news or information generated by independent news and publishing outlets. Importantly, the Indian government wanted to implement it after observing a decision taken by Australia within the European Union.