Australian mining billionaire Andrew Forrest, will help 18 small news publishers to negotiate with Google and Facebook.

The philanthropist will help the organisations to secure licensing deals for the supply of news content.

Forrest’s Minderoo Foundation will submit an application with the country’s competition regulator, which allows the publishers to bargain without breaching competition laws.

Forrest is Australia’s richest man and the largest shareholder of iron ore miner, Fortescue Metals Group.

Facebook and Google have been required to negotiate with Australian outlets for content that drives traffic and advertising to their websites.

If they don’t, the government may take over the negotiation.

Both companies have since struck licensing deals with most of Australia’s main media companies.