Tech giant Google has warned that it could stop making its search engine available in Australia if a new media law comes into effect.

The country’s prime minister Scott Morrison said: “We don't respond to threats.”

Google’s managing director for Australia and New Zealand, Mel Silva, had earlier appeared before the Australian Senate’s Economics Legislation Committee to discuss the new law, the News Media Bargaining Code.

'Untenable precedent'

The proposed legislation, which would initially apply to Facebook and Google, would require the tech giants to pay other media businesses for news content.

Mr Silva told the committee Google’s biggest concern about the proposals was a requirement to pay for links and snippets used in its search engine.

“This provision in the code would set an untenable precedent for our business, and the digital economy. It’s not compatible with how search engines work, or how the internet works,” he said.

Financial risk

“Coupled with the unmanageable financial and operational risk if this version of the code were to become law, it would give us no real choice but to stop making Google Search available in Australia,” Mr Silva added.

He urged Australia to use Google’s existing News Showcase initiative, which pays news publishers for curating news content on Google platforms.