Australia must adopt a more hardline approach to regulating Big Tech if it is to maximise the full economic benefit of technology, according to shadow minister for government services and the digital economy Paul Fletcher.
Mr Fletcher made the case for greater regulation on Sunday to address the growing market power of companies like Meta, Google and Apple, criticising the Albanese government for its lack of urgency to date.
It comes just days after Google was found to have abused its market power to quash internet search competition in the United States, and Europe’s new Digital Market Act comes into effect.
Mr Fletcher – a self-confessed “techno-optimist” – said “stronger and more confident” regulation is necessary to “continue to drive prosperity and better lives for Australians” and ensure technology remains a “net force for good”.
He said that while there had been little public appetite or support for tech regulation even 15 years ago, that was no longer the case, and pressure is growing to address persistent concerns from the community.
And while tech giants will continue to “pushback” against regulation, they ultimately need to “comply with the law of the land, particularly in liberal democracies like Australia,” he said.
“The idea which was quite widely accepted 20 years ago that the internet in some way should be beyond the reach of the rule of law or actions by individual governments, that idea is no longer taken seriously,” he said.
But despite real reform through policies like the New Media Bargaining Code and ongoing work by the competition watchdog to address residual and emerging issues, Mr Fletcher said the government has not kept pace since coming to office.
“There has been little political support or focus on these issues in the current government and that needs to change,” he told the 2024 TechLeaders conference on Sunday.
That is most evident with the government’s “tentative” response to Facebook’s refusal to renew its deals with news media businesses in Australia, Mr Fletcher said, with responsibility relegated to Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones.
“Leaving this issue in the hands of the Assistant Treasurer sends a clear signal to the big tech companies that the Australian government does not see this as a priority,” Mr Fletcher said.
Other issues which need policy attention in Australia include Apple’s dominance in the payments sector and its 30 per cent App Store commission, and Uber’s margins on riding trips.
Mr Fletcher said that, wherever possible, Australia should look to align with the standards adopted by likeminded countries, using automative industry as an example of best practice.
“You don’t want to be having country specific regulation, because imposed costs and in turn that means consumers here… pay more. But you absolutely reserve the right to regulate specifically.
“And just as Australia says to Toyota, Volkswagen or any other global automotive manufacturer, yes absolutely we want you here selling, but you’ve got to meet our rules. We need to be able to say the same thing to Google and Facebook on the tech side.”
Mr Fletcher also backed the work of the eSafety Commission in advocating for “safety by design”, acknowledging that there is still a “long way to go in the digital word” when it comes to safety features.
Future reforms could also be necessary to ensure the physical network infrastructure that underpins Australia’s digital economy can continue to be economically viable, he said.
“There is the economic reality that the margins made by the telcos in building and operating networks are modest, while the global tech firms which ride over those networks are making supernormal returns,” he said.
“This disparity is presenting a growing risk in my view, because if a network operator is not financially sustainable, in all or some of its operations, the risk is that the network shrinks the footprint over which it operates, or event, at the limit, ceases to operate entirely.”
Do you know more? Contact James Riley via Email.