SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Facebook is reportedly in talks with news publishers to offer “millions of dollars” for the rights to publish their material on its site. The move follows years of criticism over its growing monopolization of online advertising to the detriment of the struggling news industry.
The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that Facebook representatives had told news executives they’d pay as much as $3 million a year to license stories, headlines and other material. Facebook declined to comment but confirmed the company is working on launching a “news tab” for its service this fall.
Many in the news industry have long blamed Facebook and Google for using their content for free while they slurped up the majority of digital ad dollars, imperiling the news industry.