Jump to content

Google says to block search engine in Australia if forced to pay for news


rooster59

Recommended Posts

Google says to block search engine in Australia if forced to pay for news

By Renju Jose

 

2021-01-22T102210Z_1_LYNXMPEH0L0K0_RTROPTP_4_AUSTRALIA-MEDIA-GOOGLE.JPG

FILE PHOTO: FILE PHOTO: An illuminated Google logo is seen inside an office building in Zurich, Switzerland December 5, 2018. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File Photo

 

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Alphabet Inc's Google said on Friday it would block its search engine in Australia if the government proceeds with a new code that would force it and Facebook Inc to pay media companies for the right to use their content.

 

Google's threat escalates a battle with publishers such as News Corp that is being closely watched around the world. The search giant had warned that its 19 million Australian users would face degraded search and YouTube experiences if the new code were enforced.

 

Australia is on course to pass laws that would make tech giants negotiate payments with local publishers and broadcasters for content included in search results or news feeds. If they cannot strike a deal, a government-appointed arbitrator will decide the price.

 

"Coupled with the unmanageable financial and operational risk if this version of the Code were to become law, it would give us no real choice but to stop making Google Search available in Australia," Mel Silva, managing director for Australia and New Zealand, told a senate committee.

 

Silva made no mention of YouTube in prepared remarks, as the video service is expected to be exempted under revisions to the code last month.

 

Google's comments drew a sharp rebuke from Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison who said the country makes its rules for "things you can do in Australia."

 

"People who want to work with that in Australia, you're very welcome. But we don't respond to threats," Morrison told reporters.

 

At the inquiry, Australian Competition and Consumer Commission chair Rod Sims, who has overseen the new rules, said he could not predict what the tech giants would do but said "there's always brinkmanship in serious negotiations".

 

"They talk of commercial deals where they're in full control of the deal," he said. "In my view that's not a commercial deal."

 

Google has called the code overly broad and said that without revisions, offering even a limited search tool would be too risky.

The company does not disclose sales from Australia, but search ads are its biggest contributor to revenue and profit globally.

 

The United States government this week asked Australia to scrap the proposed laws, which have broad political support, and suggested Australia should pursue a voluntary code instead.

 

Australia announced the legislation last month after an investigation found Google and social media giant Facebook held too much market power in the media industry, a situation it said posed a potential threat to a well-functioning democracy.

 

Google's threat to limit its services in Australia came just hours after the internet giant reached a content-payment deal with some French news publishers as part of three-year, $1.3-billion push to support publishers.

 

Google's testimony "is part of a pattern of threatening behaviour that is chilling for anyone who values our democracy," said Peter Lewis, director of the Australia Institute's Centre for Responsible Technology.

 

(Reporting by Renju Jose; Editing by Byron Kaye and Gerry Doyle)

 

reuters_logo.jpg

-- © Copyright Reuters 2021-01-23
 
  • Haha 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

Never heard of new search engines to just "pop up" especially with anything close to the content of goggle.

Anyway, good luck to Aus. Facebook has 2.7 billion users and Google over one billion.

Aus. users are a very very small part of their business doubt they will be missed much by these popular worldwide tech. giants. 

Edited by bkk6060
  • Like 1
  • Sad 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, rooster59 said:

Google's threat to limit its services in Australia came just hours after the internet giant reached a content-payment deal with some French news publishers as part of three-year, $1.3-billion push to support publishers.

"Google will end up giving about €150m to the French press over the next three years. The details show a mixture of a genuine and impactful arrangement and the usual convoluted dealings to make a new set of subsidies looking like a sound business deal."

Inside Google’s Deal with the French Media | by Frederic Filloux | Nov, 2020 | Monday Note

  • Like 1
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

18 minutes ago, natway09 said:

This discussion never came up when Murdoch's News Corp & his cronies Companies  basically had a stranglehold on the worlds media for how many years ?

 

You mean the people wanting Google to pay them now because their business model hasn't kept up with the times?

 

Bit of a difference comparing the challenges they faced in the "good old days" to now; didn't really have someone scraping their printed edition as soon as it hit the street then reprinting it basically instantly.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Was the "banning" of the ABC from their search engine a commercial decision or a threat to the Oz government. I have no respect for the wimps running the government but I hope they grow some for this fight. They bowed to all of the lies from Pompeo so I will not hold my breath.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, John Drake said:

 

And this is the difference between a country where corporations control government (the US) and a country that controls the corporations (Australia).

What baloney. Heard of Rupert Murdoch?

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 1/23/2021 at 9:31 AM, rooster59 said:

Google says to block search engine in Australia if forced to pay for news

By Renju Jose

 

2021-01-22T102210Z_1_LYNXMPEH0L0K0_RTROPTP_4_AUSTRALIA-MEDIA-GOOGLE.JPG

FILE PHOTO: FILE PHOTO: An illuminated Google logo is seen inside an office building in Zurich, Switzerland December 5, 2018. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File Photo

 

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Alphabet Inc's Google said on Friday it would block its search engine in Australia if the government proceeds with a new code that would force it and Facebook Inc to pay media companies for the right to use their content.

 

Google's threat escalates a battle with publishers such as News Corp that is being closely watched around the world. The search giant had warned that its 19 million Australian users would face degraded search and YouTube experiences if the new code were enforced.

 

Australia is on course to pass laws that would make tech giants negotiate payments with local publishers and broadcasters for content included in search results or news feeds. If they cannot strike a deal, a government-appointed arbitrator will decide the price.

 

"Coupled with the unmanageable financial and operational risk if this version of the Code were to become law, it would give us no real choice but to stop making Google Search available in Australia," Mel Silva, managing director for Australia and New Zealand, told a senate committee.

 

Silva made no mention of YouTube in prepared remarks, as the video service is expected to be exempted under revisions to the code last month.

 

Google's comments drew a sharp rebuke from Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison who said the country makes its rules for "things you can do in Australia."

 

"People who want to work with that in Australia, you're very welcome. But we don't respond to threats," Morrison told reporters.

 

At the inquiry, Australian Competition and Consumer Commission chair Rod Sims, who has overseen the new rules, said he could not predict what the tech giants would do but said "there's always brinkmanship in serious negotiations".

 

"They talk of commercial deals where they're in full control of the deal," he said. "In my view that's not a commercial deal."

 

Google has called the code overly broad and said that without revisions, offering even a limited search tool would be too risky.

The company does not disclose sales from Australia, but search ads are its biggest contributor to revenue and profit globally.

 

The United States government this week asked Australia to scrap the proposed laws, which have broad political support, and suggested Australia should pursue a voluntary code instead.

 

Australia announced the legislation last month after an investigation found Google and social media giant Facebook held too much market power in the media industry, a situation it said posed a potential threat to a well-functioning democracy.

 

Google's threat to limit its services in Australia came just hours after the internet giant reached a content-payment deal with some French news publishers as part of three-year, $1.3-billion push to support publishers.

 

Google's testimony "is part of a pattern of threatening behaviour that is chilling for anyone who values our democracy," said Peter Lewis, director of the Australia Institute's Centre for Responsible Technology.

 

(Reporting by Renju Jose; Editing by Byron Kaye and Gerry Doyle)

 

reuters_logo.jpg

-- © Copyright Reuters 2021-01-23
 

Time to break these monopoly companies up destroying whats left not leftist of Democracy Fakebook , Amazon , YouTube ++++ List goes on and on Google are guilty along with others doing what the CCP want and what they CCP unleashed via covid cover up and biased leftist reporting cancel culture no rights to freedom of speech fed up with Dictatorships be it Australian Government Corrupt  Country outside of China or any other Government Took CCP Money to enslaves there peoples.. 

Edited by Mad mick
Spelling
  • Confused 1
  • Sad 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 minutes ago, Thakkar said:


I use several different browsers, each with a different default search engine, none of them google.

 

Still, I occasionally go direct to google for a particular search and find it to be the fastest and most intuitive, delivering the most relevant results right off the bat. I imagine how much *more* intuitive it would be if I used it regularly and it consequently knew more about me.

 

However, With search, I’d argue that less is more because the less perfect search engines inadvertently allow for serendipity. Like browsing at a large, less than perfectly organized bookstore; I find unexpected delights that I wouldn’t have using the oh so perfect google that would’ve promptly, unfailingly given me my answer and got me to just move on.

 

I encourage everyone to use google alternatives, and I encourage google to share some of their largess with the people who, by freely sharing their content, have helped google get to where they are. 

 

*btw, google clearly recognize the serendipity angle with their “I’m feeling lucky” button. But to me, it seems contrived.

I suppose I could use google to search - but the results may be tainted ????

 

can you offer some of the other search engines you use?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

46 minutes ago, ncc1701d said:

I suppose I could use google to search - but the results may be tainted ????

 

can you offer some of the other search engines you use?


 

Alohafind - built into the Aloha browser, but can be used separately in other browsers

 

Ecoasia - browser cum search engine

 

Duckduckgo - they also have their own browser. Duck has a command that allows you to search using google, but without giving google any of your data.

 

iCab - an excellent, endlessly customizable, feature-rich browser which has a list of third party search engines you can set as defaults

 

Startpage.com - I believe (from memory when they initially launched) that this is a european initiative and endorsed by some EU agency

 

Bing - microsoft

 

Wolframalpha - narrow usefulness, but very good for fact based questions, or mathematical queries.

 

IXquick

  • Like 1
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 1/23/2021 at 12:54 AM, ezzra said:

Just look how Whatapp has folded like a cheap lawn chair when millions have abandon them and India PM told them to stop this nonsense as India has 500 million users...

Switched to telegram . Was with wattsapp from day dot . Telegram has great stickers btw. The best I have seen on any platform.

 

Also with Signal now. Had a few teething problems but now seem to over most of them . Obviously they weren’t ready for the mass exodus from wattsitcalled. 

 

Edited by goldenbrwn1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

23 hours ago, John Drake said:

 

And this is the difference between a country where corporations control government (the US) and a country that controls the corporations (Australia).

Because mining interests have so little say in the present government? Your comment is ridiculous.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.




×
×
  • Create New...