European publishers slam Google copyright deal

Managing IP is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 1-2 Paris Gardens, London, SE1 8ND

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2025

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

European publishers slam Google copyright deal

Publishers in Europe have expressed their anger at a deal done between Google and French publishers last week to settle a row about copyright, remuneration and article snippets

Earlier this month Google chairman Eric Schmidt said the internet company has agreed two new initiatives with the French government. The first will see the US internet company create a €60 million “Digital Publishing Innovation Fund” to help support what he called “transformative digital publishing initiatives” for French readers. The second will see Google help French publishers increase their online revenues using its advertising technology.

The deal, signed by Schmidt and President Hollande, came after the French government had threatened to introduce legislation to force Google to pay for posting links to copyright owners’ content.

But this week members of the European Publishers Council said that publishers want to find longer-term, legally-based solutions to the problem of Google’s use of copyright material.

The Council’s executive director Angela Mills Wade said: “The type of deal arranged between Google and a group of French publishers does not address the continuing problem of unauthorised reuse and monetisation of content, and so does not provide the online press with the financial certainty or mechanisms for legal redress which it needs to build sustainable business models and ensure its continued investment in high-quality content.”

She went on to call for more countries to adopt proposals put forward by Germany: “The EPC is supporting its members in Germany and elsewhere who are holding fast and demanding laws in their countries that would allow publishers to charge aggregators and search engines for reproducing publishers’ content. The proposed German law, currently in draft form, would apply to any aggregator, not just Google, and would provide a legal basis to prohibit unauthorised use of publishers’ content.”

The Council also called on the European Commission to help restore competition to search and search advertising. Google is being investigated for allegedly manipulating its search services to direct users to its own services and reducing the visibility of competing websites.



more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

A win for Nintendo in China and King & Spalding hiring a prominent patent litigator were also among the top talking points
Rebecca Newman at Addleshaw Goddard, who live-reported on the seminal dispute, unpicks the trials and tribulations of the case and considers its impact
Attorneys predict how Lululemon’s trade dress and design patent suit against Costco could play out
Lawyers at Linklaters analyse some of the key UPC trends so far, and look ahead to life beyond the transition period
David Rodrigues, who previously worked at an IP boutique, said he may become more involved in transactional work at his new firm
Indian smartphone maker Lava must pay $2.3 million as a security deposit for past sales, as its dispute with Dolby over audio coding SEPs plays out
Powell Gilbert’s opening in Düsseldorf, complete with a new partner hire, continues this summer’s trend of UPC-related lateral movement
IP leaders at Brandsmiths and Bird & Bird, who were on opposing sides at the UK Supreme Court in Iconix v Dream Pairs, unpick the landmark case and its ramifications
Magdalena Bonde discusses Abion’s AI experiments and reveals why an entrepreneurial mindset and a willingness to learn about a business are essential skills
Partner Ginevra Righini explains how she secured victory for the Comité Champagne in its fight against an EUTM application for ‘Nero Champagne’
Gift this article