Samuel Case, FISM News
Google is working on plans to pay $1 billion to global news publishers over the next three years. News publishers have long fought Google for payment for use of their stories, and the site has drawn heavy criticism from European media groups.
The new product is called Google News Showcase and will first launch in Germany and Brazil. Showcase allows for outlets to pick and present their own stories. So far it has attracted around 200 publishers from around the world. At first, it will only be available on Android devices through Google News, but will eventually be added to Apple devices as well.
Angela Mills Wade, the Executive Director of the European Publishers Council (EPC), whose members include News UK, the Guardian, and the New York Times, to name a few, criticized the move. She said now Google “can dictate terms and conditions” and “undermine legislation designed to create conditions for a fair negotiation” while saying they are a financial benefit to news outlets.
The product builds on a licensing deal with media groups in Australia, Brazil, and Germany; a deal that also didn’t please the EPC. Currently, Google is negotiating with French publishers, who are some of the company’s strongest critics. This comes as Australia is attempting to make Google and Facebook pay for news from local media outlets.
Other forms of online publishers such as weather and recipe sites have also been critical of Google for damaging their income.
Sourced from Reuters American Wire