1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,920 Free access to information is one of the hallmarks of the modern web. 2 00:00:03,920 --> 00:00:07,280 I mean, how many times you've fallen down a Wikipedia hole at two in the morning 3 00:00:07,280 --> 00:00:10,560 only to wake up the next morning tired out of your mind, 4 00:00:10,560 --> 00:00:14,240 but smarter. This concept, ironically, is a huge part 5 00:00:14,240 --> 00:00:17,880 of how Google became so rich by making it super easy 6 00:00:17,880 --> 00:00:22,160 to search all the web's free information and selling ads on the search results, 7 00:00:22,160 --> 00:00:26,680 Larry Page made enough to buy himself a yacht, or three. 8 00:00:26,680 --> 00:00:32,060 But even though this has been awesome for average web users, many of the traditional news organizations 9 00:00:32,060 --> 00:00:36,820 whose links turn up in Google search results have soured on this arrangement lately. 10 00:00:36,820 --> 00:00:41,540 Google does drive traffic to these sites, which run their own ads to monetize articles, 11 00:00:41,540 --> 00:00:44,980 but the ad revenue for news outlets hasn't been all that impressive, 12 00:00:44,980 --> 00:00:49,540 which is a big part of the reason it's become more and more common for news sites to operate 13 00:00:49,540 --> 00:00:54,060 behind paywalls instead of giving away their content for nothing. 14 00:00:54,060 --> 00:00:58,660 Greedy capitalists. Of course, paywalls actually decrease 15 00:00:58,660 --> 00:01:02,060 a news outlets readership. So some of them are looking for a solution 16 00:01:02,060 --> 00:01:07,820 that would help them monetize their work while keeping their content free, at least for users. 17 00:01:07,820 --> 00:01:13,340 They want Google and other large services to pay for the privilege of linking to their articles. 18 00:01:13,340 --> 00:01:16,780 Such payments are popularly referred to as link taxes 19 00:01:16,780 --> 00:01:21,580 and have been the source of controversy in both France and more recently, Australia. 20 00:01:21,580 --> 00:01:24,620 Unsurprisingly, given that Google doesn't have any obligation 21 00:01:24,620 --> 00:01:29,020 under traditional copyright laws to pay news providers to link to their articles, 22 00:01:29,020 --> 00:01:33,260 their response has been more or less, yeah, why don't you stick it in man's 23 00:01:33,260 --> 00:01:37,920 where the IGB don't shine? Unfortunately for Google, however, 24 00:01:37,920 --> 00:01:41,300 traditional copyright laws aren't the only things they have to worry about. 25 00:01:41,300 --> 00:01:45,980 The European Union's 2019 copyright directive attempted to help news organizations 26 00:01:45,980 --> 00:01:50,300 by giving them extra rights with respect to how their content is used online. 27 00:01:50,300 --> 00:01:53,580 Then, when France moved to implement the new regulations, 28 00:01:53,580 --> 00:01:57,980 Google decided to remove snippets of news articles, but leave the headlines, 29 00:01:57,980 --> 00:02:02,680 thinking this would get them out of paying. Google's wise to the game. 30 00:02:02,680 --> 00:02:08,160 But wait, then the French government clapped back, saying that Google couldn't just unilaterally 31 00:02:08,160 --> 00:02:13,600 decide not to show snippets. Their rationale was that Google had so much market power 32 00:02:13,600 --> 00:02:19,400 that if they just refused to show snippets, it would completely undermine the law and hurt news sites. 33 00:02:19,400 --> 00:02:23,880 In other words, France viewed Google's tactics as anti-competitive. 34 00:02:23,880 --> 00:02:27,800 What, Google anti-competitive? 35 00:02:27,800 --> 00:02:31,520 Google later reached an agreement in France where they would pay news sites 36 00:02:31,520 --> 00:02:34,960 in order to use the articles as part of news showcase, 37 00:02:34,960 --> 00:02:40,840 which featured more content than just a headline and a link. More recently, Australia has proposed another law 38 00:02:40,840 --> 00:02:45,120 aimed at helping its own domestic media, which would force Google to pay for links 39 00:02:45,120 --> 00:02:49,200 to Australian news websites. And the legal situation wouldn't allow Google 40 00:02:49,200 --> 00:02:52,320 to simply remove those links instead of coughing up the money. 41 00:02:52,400 --> 00:02:55,440 Furthermore, the proposed law would also force Google 42 00:02:55,440 --> 00:03:00,120 to tell Australian news websites about any changes it makes to its algorithm. 43 00:03:00,120 --> 00:03:04,240 That's our secret algorithm. You see, many aspects of Google's search algorithm 44 00:03:04,240 --> 00:03:08,800 are highly protected trade secrets. So it's no wonder Google is trying to fight this tooth 45 00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:13,560 and nail, even going so far as to threaten to pull out of the Australian search engine market 46 00:03:13,560 --> 00:03:17,240 completely if the law passes. For now, though, the Australian government 47 00:03:17,240 --> 00:03:22,280 seems undeterred, highlighting the possibility they've been galvanized by what happened in France 48 00:03:22,280 --> 00:03:26,520 one of EU's largest countries. Google, however, notes that the French deal 49 00:03:26,520 --> 00:03:30,760 didn't require them to pay for hyperlinks, while the Australian bill does, 50 00:03:30,760 --> 00:03:35,720 making it more of a burden than a joey that refuses to leave the pouch. 51 00:03:35,720 --> 00:03:38,720 That's stupid. Of course, it isn't just Google shareholders 52 00:03:38,720 --> 00:03:42,800 that are worried about laws such as these. Many advocates for a free and open internet 53 00:03:42,800 --> 00:03:47,320 are concerned that link taxes could threaten how the web fundamentally operates. 54 00:03:47,320 --> 00:03:51,840 And the raising concerns that a change in law like this could result in local news reporters 55 00:03:51,880 --> 00:03:57,280 knocking on elementary school doors demanding payment for like little Johnny's show and tell 56 00:03:57,280 --> 00:04:01,200 about the cheese festival article he cut out and shared with the class. 57 00:04:01,200 --> 00:04:05,080 Come on, Google, think of Johnny's cheese. 58 00:04:05,080 --> 00:04:09,200 And one more thing to think about. Maybe think about me saying to you, 59 00:04:09,200 --> 00:04:12,680 thanks for watching this video, huh? Think about liking the video. 60 00:04:12,680 --> 00:04:16,880 Think about disliking the video if you didn't like it. Hey, here's a thing to think about. 61 00:04:16,880 --> 00:04:20,200 Check out our other videos and comment below with video suggestions. 62 00:04:20,200 --> 00:04:25,760 And don't forget to think about subscribing and following us and then doing it.