Meta has signed an AI licensing agreement with News Corp that will allow the Meta AI creator to use the content wall street journal and other brands in its chatbot responses and for training its AI models. News Corp confirmed to Engadget that it has struck a deal with Meta, but did not provide specific details about the terms of the agreement. According to The Wall Street Journal, Meta will pay News Corp “up to $50 million per year” for a three-year deal, which will include content. The Journal, As well as the media giant’s other brands in the US and UK.
News Corp previously signed a five-year deal with OpenAI, valued at about $250 million. During a recent appearance at Morgan Stanley’s annual Technology, Media and Telecom (TMT) conference, News Corp CEO Robert Thomson indicated that the media company was in “advanced stages with other negotiations”.
He described the company’s overall approach towards such arrangements as “a lure and a lawsuit” strategy, depending on whether companies want to pay for the content or let it go down without permission. “We have what you might call a strategy of cajoling and suing,” he said. “We’ll tempt you. We’d like you to be our partner. But if you’re stealing our stuff, we’re going to sue you. So there will be immunity for those who turn themselves in, and punishment for those who resist.”
A Meta spokesperson confirmed that the two companies have reached an agreement. The company, which is reorganizing its AI teams to build its next model, has struck several licensing deals in recent months. It previously signed multi-year agreements USA Today, People, cnn, fox news and other outlets. The company said at the time that “By integrating more and different types of news sources, we aim to improve Meta AI’s ability to deliver timely and relevant content and information with a variety of viewpoints and content types.”
Update, March 3, 2026, 4:18 PM PT: This story was updated with additional information from a Meta spokesperson.
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