🚨 Google owes German media 1.3 billion euros per year

This is the conclusion of a study by FehrAdvice & Partners AG, commissioned by the collecting society representing German press publishers Corint Media. It contradicts Google's claim that journalistic content makes only a small contribution to its sales. The extent of this contribution was previously difficult to estimate due to the opacity of generative AI operating processes and Google's lack of transparency. The study shows that journalistic content improves the quality of search results offered by the search engine, whereas searches without journalistic sources are often deemed incomplete and unsatisfactory by web users. Google would lose its attractiveness and profitability if it didn't use content from press publishers. What's more, the added value of media content accounts for around 12% of its total advertising sales in Germany.

The widespread use of AI poses a direct threat to the existence of the media, insofar as it relies on the use of their content without remuneration for the training of its models. This practice contravenes the 2019/790 directive on copyright and related rights. What's more, a study by Ahrefs estimates that, as a result of summaries automatically generated by Google's AI, site visits have fallen by 34.5% compared to search engines without this type of summary. This significant drop in readership, coupled with that of subscriptions and advertising, leads to a significant loss of revenue for press companies. To remedy this imbalance, Corint Media entered into negotiations and demanded a license fee of 420 million euros per year from Google for the media houses it represents. Dissatisfied with Google's much lower proposal of 3.2 million euros, Corint Media referred the matter to the German Patent and Trademark Office (DPMA). Pending its decision, Google has undertaken to pay this amount and is in the process of concluding licenses with certain press publishers.

In France, the Autorité de la Concurrence has fined Google 750 million euros for violating its obligation of transparency when negotiating neighboring rights with press publishers.

Beyond its economic dimension, the remuneration of press publishers raises central democratic issues concerning media diversity, opinion-forming and the quality of information.

The article about the study can be found at the following address: https://www.faz.net/aktuell/feuilleton/medien-und-film/medienpolitik/studie-von-corint-media-google-schuldet-deutscher-presse-1-3-milliarden-euro-110530503.html

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