While publishers’ complaints about Google’s use of their content go back years, a 2007 court decision found Google’s use of thumbnail photographs constituted fair use under copyright laws. The News Media Alliance paper argues that, since that decision, Google is no longer just a search engine that points users to original websites but instead is a destination and publisher in itself – and one that has used its power to go beyond fair-use protections. — Reuters
Alphabet Inc’s Google has used its dominance to strong-arm news organisations into giving up their content without adequate compensation, a trade group for publishers said in a report to the US Justice Department, which is investigating the Internet giant for potential antitrust violations.
Google relies heavily on news content to draw traffic and fuel its advertising business, yet it has so much power as an online platform that news organisations can’t realistically negotiate content licenses with the company, the News Media Alliance said in the paper made public June 18. That’s unlike Facebook Inc and Apple Inc, which pay publishers.
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