Facebook says it will pay French publishers for news content

PARIS (AP) — Facebook says it’s struck a deal with a group of French publishers to pay for links to their news stories that are shared by people on the social network. The company said Thursday that it inked the licensing agreement with a group representing 300 French publishers to “improve the quality of online information for Internet users and publishers on Facebook.” The financial terms weren’t disclosed. The licensing deal is the result of a wider push by authorities in Europe and elsewhere to force Facebook and other social media companies to compensate publishers for content.