Social media companies must pay creators fairly: Vaishnaw | India News

New Delhi: Information and Broadcasting Minister Dr Ashwini Vaishnav Thursday said social media platforms must compensate creators of content used to make billions in profits.“Social media platforms must share revenue in a fair way with the people who are creating the content, be it news personalities, mainstream media, creators from far-flung regions, influencers or professors and researchers using the platforms to disseminate their work... There should be a fair share of revenue with those who are creating the content,” said Vaishnav at the Storyboard 18 Digital News Publishers Association conclave.

‘Social media giants must be held accountable’Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnab’s pitch for “fair compensation” comes amid a global debate over social media giants’ refusal to compensate creators of content they have exploited for huge profits.While the conclave’s discussion focused on the ethics of the platforms, Vaishnav said that social media companies can no longer act as neutral intermediaries. They now act like publishers and must be held accountable for the content they host and disseminate, he said.Vaishnav said the evolution of the Internet into a robust media ecosystem demands a redistribution of responsibility. “The nature of the Internet has changed… Today it’s become a powerful media outlet, where, like the media, platforms must take responsibility,” he said, adding, “Platforms must take responsibility for what they’re putting out.”Warning deepfakes, misinformation and synthetic media are eroding public confidence, the minister said the damage goes beyond personal loss. “Entire societies are built on trust in institutions … that very basic tenet of trust is under threat,” he said, pointing to the rapid spread of fake photos and videos through algorithm-driven virality.The I&B minister also emphasized that synthetic materials should not be manufactured without express consent.