In a statement, Rupert Murdoch, the Chairman of Twenty-First Century Fox (FOXA) said, “If Facebook wants to recognize ‘trusted’ publishers then it should pay those publishers a carriage fee similar to the model adopted by cable companies.”
As per a survey of Pew Research Centre, nearly 45% of adults in the US gets news from Facebook.
Murdoch intended to say that, the publishers through their ‘content and news’ boost the worth and reliability of Facebook, but in return they are not rewarded sufficiently.
According to an analyst estimate, on Jan. 31, Facebook is likely to post one fourth of a quarter revenues of $12.5 billion, a 42% growth with profits increasing 60% to $1.94 per share.
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook stated their plans to decrease the quantity of stories people wishes to view, ensuring that they see what is “trustworthy, informative and local.” They also plan to do a survey, taking views from users if they are acquainted with the source of the news, and if yes, if they trust the source.
Later Murdoch said, “We will closely follow the latest shift in Facebook’s strategy, and I have no doubt that Mark Zuckerberg is a sincere person, but there is still a serious lack of transparency that should concern publishers and those wary of political bias at these powerful platforms.”