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Compensate publishers or face legal route: Ashwini Vaishnaw's warning to digital platforms
Ashwini Vaishnaw urged digital platforms to ensure fair compensation for news publishers and content creators, warning of potential legal measures.
Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Thursday called on digital platforms to ensure fair compensation for news publishers and content creators, warning that the government could explore legal measures if voluntary arrangements are not forthcoming.
Speaking at the Digital News Publishers Association (DNPA) Conclave 2026, Vaishnaw said platforms that use journalistic content must share value equitably with those who produce it.
“Platforms must work to share fair compensation for the content they use from publishers and creators. They either do it voluntarily or else there are legal ways to get it done,” he said.
Vaishnaw warned that failure to adhere to these principles would have consequences.
“Non-adherence to these principles will definitely make them responsible because the nature of Internet has changed now,” he said, indicating that platforms could be held liable if they do not proactively address harmful or misleading content.
He also flagged the growing misuse of artificial intelligence tools to create synthetic content without consent.
“Synthetic content should not be generated without the consent of the person whose face or voice or personality has been used to create the content. Time has come to make that big inflectional change,” the minister said.
Push for fair value exchange
Vaishnaw’s remarks come amid increasing friction globally between AI platforms and media organisations over revenue sharing, especially as the AI platforms leverage news content to drive engagement and advertising income.
While acknowledging the rapid transformation brought about by artificial intelligence and digital distribution, the minister underscored that innovation cannot come at the cost of sustainability for publishers.
The DNPA Conclave 2026 brought together policymakers, media leaders and industry stakeholders to discuss regulatory frameworks, newsroom transformation and the economics of digital publishing in an AI-driven environment.
DNPA chairperson Mariam Mammen Mathew said collaboration between platforms, publishers and policymakers was essential at a time when AI is reshaping the foundations of news. Vice-chairperson Puneet Gupta added that the future of digital journalism hinges on aligning innovation with sustainability and fair value exchange.
