[eMarketer] Meta’s business model is under threat at home and abroad

Congress has shelved a media bill that would give publishers greater leverage in negotiating distribution deals with tech platforms days after Meta condemned the measure and threatened to ban news content entirely.

This isn’t the first time Meta pulled out the “ban-all-news” threat in response to legislation giving publishers negotiating power.

Facebook had a long, troubled relationship with the news media. Its rise is often blamed for the decay of the news industry, and it infamously misled publishers about its video metrics, prompting an industrywide “pivot to video” strategy that tanked revenues.

According to eMarketer, Meta has repeatedly insisted that news content makes up a small share of its overall revenues and that users want less of it. The US bill follows Facebook’s decision not to renew years-old deals with publishers for running content on its News tab, and Facebook’s broader shift away from news and toward influencers.

Meta’s insistence that news isn’t a major part of its business model begs the question—what is? Its various ventures have hit serious roadblocks or come under threat by regulatory action, stifling the company’s efforts.

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