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2mo ago

Google Reports European News Content Has Negligible Value to Its Platform

An experiment in eight EU countries found no significant impact on ad revenue or user behavior when news content was removed for 1% of users.

WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 11: Google CEO Sundar Pichai testifies before the House Judiciary Committee at the Rayburn House Office Building on December 11, 2018 in Washington, DC. The committee held a hearing on 'Transparency & Accountability: Examining Google and its Data Collection, Use and Filtering Practices.” (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
The Independent, The Guardian and Sky News appeared top in a search by Press Gazette for Autumn Budget news at 1.30pm on 22 November 2023
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Overview

  • Google conducted a test from November 2024 to January 2025, removing news content for 1% of users in eight EU countries to measure its economic value.
  • The results showed no measurable impact on Google's ad revenue and only a 0.8% drop in platform usage during the experiment.
  • Google plans to use these findings in ongoing negotiations with European publishers under the EU Copyright Directive, which mandates payments for news content usage.
  • France and Germany were excluded from the experiment due to regulatory and legal challenges, highlighting Google's complex relationship with European regulators.
  • Despite the findings, Google asserts its commitment to supporting the news ecosystem and partnering with publishers during the digital transformation of the industry.