Why Google is threatening to cut New Zealand news site links

Google on Friday told New Zealand it will stop linking to news sites from the country if it passes a bill that would tax the search engine for using news content.

Google said in a statement that if the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill becomes law it will “stop linking to news content on Google Search, Google News, or Discover surfaces in New Zealand and discontinue our current commercial agreements and ecosystem support with New Zealand news publishers.”

Communications Minister Paul Goldsmith told RNZ that government officials have met with Google and will continue to discuss their concerns about the bill.

He said while the final number depends on negotiations, the bill could generate as much as $30 million “possibly being at stake around the Google agreement.”

The bill notes that Google uses and monetizes news content along with huge volumes of personal data without paying for it, adding that digital platforms have siphoned advertising money away from news outlets that create news content worldwide while continuing to make money off of the news content created by journalists.

“Online digital platforms aggregate and display news content to attract attention to their sites, and make money through advertising and other services, but do not effectively share that monetization with the people who create the news content,” the bill states.

Attempts by news media entities to bargain for the value of their news content are often unsuccessful, according to the bill’s statement.

As it threatened to disconnect users in new Zealand from news content, Google claimed in its Friday statement it is “a significant longtime supporter of New Zealand’s news industry.”

“We are proud of our long-standing contribution to New Zealand’s news industry,” Google’s statement said. “Our services help connect New Zealanders with quality journalism every day, driving valuable traffic to publishers.”