Facebook will pay some publishers for content on its UK news platform which launches next year.

Facebook News, a dedicated space for national and local news, will pay news outlets for content that is not already on the platform.

Archant, Conde Nast, The Economist, ESI Media, Guardian Media Group, Hearst, , Iliffe, JPI Media, Midland News Association, Reach, and STV will be some of the first publishers to appear on Facebook News in the UK.

The social media platform said that it would also include content from lifestyle brands including Cosmopolitan, Wired, GQ, Glamour, Vogue and Tatler, and that it expects many more partners to join prior to the launch in January 2021.

Facebook News has already launched in the US where, according to the platform, over 95 per cent of traffic to publishers from the site is from new audiences that have not interacted with the featured news outlets before.

Facebook News is also in active negotiations to expand to both France and Germany.
“Innovation is at the heart of everything we do at The Independent, from moving to digital-only in 2016, to becoming Britain’s largest quality digital news brand, with an average monthly global audience of 101m unique browsers,” said Zach Leonard, chief executive, The Independent.

“We are delighted to extend The Independent’s longstanding strategic partnership with Facebook through the UK launch of Facebook News, helping to bring high-quality and trustworthy news to its UK users.”

David Higgerson, chief audience officer at Reach (which runs 150 news brands including The Mirror, the Express, Daily Star, Manchester Evening News, Liverpool Echo, Birmingham Mail, Bristol Post and Daily Record) said: “We welcome the introduction of the Facebook News Tab in the UK as a sign of Facebook’s commitment to ensuring that accurate, well-researched journalism is given prominence on its platform.”

Bobby Hain, managing director, broadcast at STV said: “STV News is one of the most trusted sources of news in Scotland. Millions of Scots rely on our programmes and digital platforms to keep them up-to-date and informed. We are delighted to be a launch partner for Facebook News and to be delivering relevant, reliable and engaging Scottish content to users of this innovative new service.”

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