Google has refused to answer questions about its confidential case of removing news sites from search results in Australia, with treasurer Josh Frydenberg saying the company should focus on paying for news, not blocking it.
Google has turned a blind eye to news buyers and consumers and media outlets this week over a case that has seen the removal of Australian media outlets such as ABC, Nine, Guardian and others from its search results.
Disstaisfaction Among The Consumers
Users have not been notified of this change, or have been advised on how to find news during the search, with some reporting that they initially believed that the problem was only affecting them.
People affected by the trial can get around the block by searching in a private browser window, such as in incognito mode in Google Chrome.
The move by Google comes as a Senate committee is reviewing legislation that will force Google and Facebook to negotiate with Australian media companies the right amount to display local content.
Google has strongly opposed the code since it was announced last year, warning users of the proposed changes in search and Google Chrome.
The Questions Asked
As per another news outlet, Guardian Australia, it submitted a list of questions to Google, a company that declined to comment. Here’s what we know, based on anecdotal reports from affected people and the previous statements the company released.
How long was the trial running for?
We don’t know for sure but this particular trial appears to have been running this week.
How many news outlets were affected?
According to reports, outlets affected include the Guardian, the Australian, the ABC, the Australian Financial Review, the Age and the Sydney Morning Herald at least.
Searches for content from these websites served up links to other websites.
Google has refused to provide a comprehensive list of which news outlets were affected.
What is the total number of users (not expressed as a percentage) in Australia who were unable to find news in search results?
A Google spokesman said on Wednesday night that the company was “running a few experiments that will each reach about 1% of Google Search users in Australia to measure the impacts of news businesses and Google Search on each other”.
Is Google planning to alert users affected about their involvement in the trial?
Google has not provided a response to this question but no person affected to whom Guardian Australia spoke was informed they were part of the trial.
What was the purpose of the trial?
A Google spokesman previously said it was one of tens of thousands of such trials the company has run on search results in the past year but gave no further details.
We have no further information on the next five questions put to Google by Guardian Australia, which include:
- Is this the only trial of its sort Google has run since the news media bargaining code was announced?
- If not, what other trials has Google undertaken?
- Are any more trials planned?
- Did Google inform the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission or the government about its plans to trial this as part of the negotiations for the news bargaining code?
- Why weren’t news outlets informed about the trial in advance?
Reactions
Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said the move highlighted the strength of the tech giants.
“This conduct by Google … I think goes very much to the kind of market power issues which this news media bargaining code is designed to deal with, and I think underlines the public policy importance of the government engaging on this,” he told ABC RN on Thursday.
Frydenberg said on Thursday major technology companies should pay for the content of the news.
“Digital giants should focus on paying for the original content and not blocking it. That is my message to those digital giants, ”said the treasurer.
While it is not uncommon for Google to respond to certain questions, the company has not yet made a further statement of the case.
If Google were to apply such a broad restriction under the proposed code, it could violate the code, and face fines of up to $ 10m. The code will require Google not to distinguish between the businesses signed up to the code and those not, as a means of avoiding entering into negotiations with the news outlets signed up to the code.
So unless all news was removed from search results entirely, Google would likely be in violation of the code.
