European justice backs demanding Meta pay media for using their content

BrusselsAnother blow from European justice against Meta. The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has overturned this Tuesday the appeal filed by the parent company of Facebook and Instagram against the Italian regulation that aims to oblige social networks and artificial intelligence services to pay compensation for feeding on and using content published by media outlets. "The right to fair remuneration for press publishers is admissible," states the ruling of the European court.

The ruling of the highest court in Luxembourg recalls that member states are not obliged to require social networks to pay copyright for the content they use. However, it also recalls that – as Italy has decided to establish – a state regulation can be approved that makes it an obligation in the territory of the member state in question.

On the other hand, the resolution also points out that all media outlets have the right to negotiate the price of their content with artificial intelligence systems or social networks, even if they only use fragments of their content. "Publishers have exclusive rights to reproduce and disseminate their press publications," the opinion states.

In the event that the two parties do not reach an agreement, publishing companies can always refuse to allow large technology companies to feed on their material and profit from it. Furthermore, the CJEU recalls that in no case can large technology companies punish media outlets that ask them for a higher price in terms of copyright or that refuse to allow their content to be used and, for example, give them less visibility.

Both the EU authorities and those of various member states have issued several opinions in recent years aimed at obliging large tech companies to pay copyright fees and, therefore, to remunerate the media. Just last year, the Spanish justice system ordered Meta to pay 479 million euros to the employers' association AMI (Association of Information Media), which also includes ARA, because it considered that the company had gained a competitive advantage by including advertising on its social networks using users' personal data protected by European regulations.