Meta removes Facebook News, to stop paying news publishers

Meta has announced not to enter into new commercial deals for traditional news content in Australia, France and Germany, and will not offer new Facebook products specifically for news publishers in the future.

In early April, the company will kill Facebook News, a dedicated tab for news content, in the US and Australia.

Facebook News was deprecated in the UK, France and Germany last year.

“People will still be able to view news on Facebook in feed in these countries, and publishers will continue to have access to their Facebook accounts and Pages, where they can post their news article links and content,” the company said in a statement.

This update does not impact the existing agreements the company has in relation to Facebook News with news publishers in Australia, France and Germany until they expire.

“This is part of an ongoing effort to better align our investments to our products and services people value the most,” Meta said.

The number of people using Facebook News in Australia and the US has dropped by over 80 per cent last year.

“As we previously shared in 2023, news makes up less than 3 per cent of what people around the world see in their Facebook feed, and is a small part of the Facebook experience for the vast majority of people,” said the company.

News organisations can still leverage products like Reels and ads system to reach broader audiences and drive people to their website, “where they keep 100 per cent of the revenue derived from outbound links on Facebook”.