White House Warning Raises Stakes in Australia’s Big Tech Push

An online-safety plan becomes a trade irritant

Australia’s proposed digital duty of care has drawn a fresh warning from the White House, turning Canberra’s effort to curb harmful content and recommendation systems into a potential dispute with its closest security ally. White House economics spokesperson Kush Desai said President Donald Trump opposes digital taxes, fines and other measures he characterizes as “extortion” of leading American technology companies.smh +1

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has rejected the pressure, saying Australia will set policy in its national interest. His government maintains that the disagreement poses no threat to the broader US-Australia relationship, while Communications Minister Anika Wells said she had not been approached by the US consul general about the reforms.smh +1

Users would gain a choice over their feeds

The draft legislation would require covered digital services to notify users that they can choose between an algorithmically recommended feed and content from accounts they follow. The regime would reach social networks, search engines and AI chatbots, while platforms would conduct annual risk assessments and disable features including endless scroll and visible engagement counts for users under 16.theguardian +1

Platforms would also have to protect children from material linked to pornography, bullying, eating disorders and hostility toward women or gender equality. Adults would receive narrower protection from seriously harmful or illegal material. Breaches could bring penalties above A$100 million; one account places the maximum at A$109.2 million, or about US$79 million.smh +1

Industry group Digi supports giving users meaningful control but says the definitions of harmful content and the effect on user experience will be decisive. Meta and TikTok declined to comment when the proposal was released, while Google did not respond.theguardian

Several policies are converging on US companies

The algorithm proposal is not Washington’s only concern. An Australian Taxation Office ruling would treat some cloud-computing and streaming payments as royalties, potentially increasing liabilities for companies including Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Apple, Spotify and Netflix. US software and trade groups argue that the approach departs from international tax norms and could discourage investment.smh +1

The administration previously used the same “extortion” language against Australia’s News Bargaining Incentive, which would collect money from social-media companies to support Australian journalism. That history makes the latest response part of a wider argument over whether Canberra is regulating online harms or unfairly concentrating costs on American businesses.smh

No retaliation has been announced, and reporting suggests White House interest remains limited compared with larger trade disputes. The immediate test is therefore political: whether Australia’s parliament preserves strong penalties and user-choice rules despite industry objections, and whether Washington escalates rhetoric into a formal trade challenge.smh +1