'Heavy handed': Several key sectors hit as Facebook blocks news sharing in Australia
Facebook is facing $3.2 billion class-action lawsuit in UK
The Australian government on Thursday slammed Facebook's news blackout as "heavy-handed" after the social media giant blocked sharing of news in Australia.
"Facebook was wrong. Facebook's actions were unnecessary, they were heavy-handed, and they will damage its reputation here in Australia," Josh Frydenberg, the government's treasurer, said.
Several other sectors including health, fire and meteorological services were also hit as their Facebook pages went down.
Australia's Treasurer Josh Frydenberg had said earlier that he had agreed with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg "to try to find a pathway forward".
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William Easton, Facebook's manager for Australia and New Zealand had said earlier that, "The proposed law fundamentally misunderstands the relationship between our platform and publishers who use it to share news content."
"It has left us facing a stark choice: attempt to comply with a law that ignores the realities of this relationship, or stop allowing news content on our services in Australia. With a heavy heart, we are choosing the latter," Easton said.