Facebook is in discussion with prominent publishers like ABC News, Dow Jones, The Washington Post, and Bloomberg to license its content for a news-oriented section of the Facebook site. It is a strategic change for the social media giant where media houses would receive a nice licensing fee of $3 million.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Facebook had approached several news outlets, including ABC News, Dow Jones the Washington Post, and Bloomberg. According to the reports, the deal with the media houses would last for three years.
In recent times the social media giant; Facebook has faced a barrage of criticism for soaking up massive ad revenues while diverting traffic to marginal news organizations churning out clickbait. Cutting deals with some of the news industry’s top brands would allow Facebook to showcase high-quality journalism while directly supporting the organizations that produce it.
However, $3 million in annual licensing fees doesn’t sound like a hugely significant sum taking the big companies that are involved. Example, The Washington Post that earned more than $100 million in digital ad revenue alone in 2017. Last year, Facebook had put down its relationship with publishers like Campbell Brown, telling them to get off the platform if they didn’t like it.
Now, the company appears to be willing to try its hand yet again at the news, although this time on seemingly friendlier terms. The News initiative could launch as early as this year, though it’s not clear if any news outlets have agreed to Facebook’s terms.
