(Reuters) – Microsoft Corp on Wednesday said it fully supported new laws proposed in Australia that would force internet giants Google and Facebook Inc to pay domestic media for their content.
“While Microsoft is not subject to the pending legislation at this time, we would be happy to abide by these rules if the government names us,” the software company said in a statement.
“The code reasonably seeks to address the bargaining power imbalance between digital platforms and the Australian news industry.”
Both Google and Facebook Alphabet Inc have called the laws inoperable and said last month that they would pull some key services out of Australia if the rules went ahead.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Monday that Microsoft was ready to step in and expand its Bing search results in Australia if Google pulled out its search engine, after speaking to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella last week.
Google search engine accounts for 94% of the country’s search market, according to industry data.
Microsoft said in its statement that it will allow small companies to move their advertising business to Bing at no cost and invest more in the product to ensure it is competitive.
Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Reporting with Rashmi Ashok in Bengaluru and Byron Kaye in Sydney; Edited by Himani Sarkar and Sam Holmes