Google to pay news publishers for content in France

According to reports, Google announced today that it has submitted a proposal to the French anti-monopoly regulator. Google hopes to resolve the dispute it has with French news organizations and publishers. The main reason for the dispute has been payment for news content. The French Competition Authority (FCA) said in a statement that it will ask the public for suggestions and all parties must respond by January 31, 2022.

For many years, the advertising revenue of news organizations has been eroded by news aggregators such as Google and Facebook. They complained that these technology companies used their content in search results or other functions without paying copyright fees. Google believes that its news search service only provides a very small part of the entire news.

Later, the revised “European Copyright Directive” was passed, and France took the lead in implementing it. The new copyright law will force Google to pay publishers for news clips and require Facebook to filter out protected content.

Today, as part of its proposal, Google promised to “in good faith” negotiate with news organizations and publishers about the cost of using its content. In addition, Google also promised to propose a payment price within 3 months after the start of the negotiation. If they can not reach an agreement, it will be possible to appeal to the arbitration tribunal. The court will then decide the amount that Google will have to pay.

Google stated on its French official website that the proposal highlights Google’s willingness to open a new chapter in copyright disputes. In November last year, Google has started to pay AFP (AFP) for its news content.

Google and Facebook had similar struggles in Australia earlier this year

Australia and Facebook have been having a tough time on some issues regarding Facebook’s operation in Australia. As a result, Facebook had to ban Australian users from viewing or sharing news on Facebook. However, the two parties have been in negotiations and the ban will soon be over. However, the Australian Parliament passed a new law that forces digital giants such as Facebook and Google to pay local publishers for news content.

Google actually considered shutting down its search engine services in Australia. However, this was not the best option for the company. It has since commenced negotiations with Australian news firms. Facebook also banned Australian users from viewing or sharing news on its platform. However, Facebook eventually lifted the ban.

Google has previously reached an independent agreement to pay news fees to a series of Australian publishers, including News Corporation, and Facebook is currently doing the same. In its initial negotiation with Australia’s biggest publishers, Google cut a deal of over $47 million per year. However, after further reviews, the official signing of commercial contracts is worth about $23 million per year. News firms in Australia like Nine Entertainment, Seven West, and others will have their individual agreements.