Facebook Inc chief executive officer Mark Zuckerberg called Australian lawmakers last week to discuss rules that would make Internet giants pay news outlets for content but failed to persuade them to change policy, the country’s Treasurer said on Sunday.

Zuckerberg “reached out to talk about the code and the impact on Facebook” and a constructive discussion followed last week between the social media billionaire, Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and communications minister Paul Fletcher.

“No, Mark Zuckerberg didn’t convince me to back down...