International: Google will start paying select news publishers around the world for their content under a new licensing program.
The announcement comes after years of the tech giant pushing back against pressure from regulators and media owners to pay for news articles.
Under the new agreement, Google will pay publishers in Australia, Brazil and Germany for content on Google News and Discover, including paying for users to read paywalled articles on a publisher’s site in some cases.
“This endeavor will diversify our support for news businesses today, building on the value we already provide through Search and our ongoing efforts with the Google News Initiative to help journalism thrive in the digital age,” Brad Bender, Google’s vice-president for news, says.
“While we’ve previously funded high-quality content, this program is a significant step forward in how we will support the creation of this kind of journalism. To start, we have signed partnerships with local and national publications in Germany, Australia and Brazil.” He added.
The new product will be available on Google News and Discover. Bender said Google would also offer to pay for free access for users to read paywalled articles on a publisher’s site where available.
Earlier, France’s competition authority has ordered Google to pay French publishers for their content while Australia said it would force the company and Facebook to share advertising revenue with local media groups.
Publishers involved in the project are Germany’s Der Spiegel, Frankfurter AllgemeineZeitung, Die Zeit and Rheinische Post, Australian groups Schwartz Media, The Conversation and Solstice Media, and Brazil’s Diarios Associados and A Gazeta.
