WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.920 Free access to information is one of the hallmarks of the modern web. 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 00:00:07.280 --> 00:00:10.560 only to wake up the next morning tired out of your mind, 00:00:10.560 --> 00:00:14.240 but smarter. This concept, ironically, is a huge part 00:00:14.240 --> 00:00:17.880 of how Google became so rich by making it super easy 00:00:17.880 --> 00:00:22.160 to search all the web's free information and selling ads on the search results, 00:00:22.160 --> 00:00:26.680 Larry Page made enough to buy himself a yacht, or three. 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 00:00:32.060 --> 00:00:36.820 whose links turn up in Google search results have soured on this arrangement lately. 00:00:36.820 --> 00:00:41.540 Google does drive traffic to these sites, which run their own ads to monetize articles, 00:00:41.540 --> 00:00:44.980 but the ad revenue for news outlets hasn't been all that impressive, 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 00:00:49.540 --> 00:00:54.060 behind paywalls instead of giving away their content for nothing. 00:00:54.060 --> 00:00:58.660 Greedy capitalists. Of course, paywalls actually decrease 00:00:58.660 --> 00:01:02.060 a news outlets readership. So some of them are looking for a solution 00:01:02.060 --> 00:01:07.820 that would help them monetize their work while keeping their content free, at least for users. 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. 00:01:13.340 --> 00:01:16.780 Such payments are popularly referred to as link taxes 00:01:16.780 --> 00:01:21.580 and have been the source of controversy in both France and more recently, Australia. 00:01:21.580 --> 00:01:24.620 Unsurprisingly, given that Google doesn't have any obligation 00:01:24.620 --> 00:01:29.020 under traditional copyright laws to pay news providers to link to their articles, 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 00:01:33.260 --> 00:01:37.920 where the IGB don't shine? Unfortunately for Google, however, 00:01:37.920 --> 00:01:41.300 traditional copyright laws aren't the only things they have to worry about. 00:01:41.300 --> 00:01:45.980 The European Union's 2019 copyright directive attempted to help news organizations 00:01:45.980 --> 00:01:50.300 by giving them extra rights with respect to how their content is used online. 00:01:50.300 --> 00:01:53.580 Then, when France moved to implement the new regulations, 00:01:53.580 --> 00:01:57.980 Google decided to remove snippets of news articles, but leave the headlines, 00:01:57.980 --> 00:02:02.680 thinking this would get them out of paying. Google's wise to the game. 00:02:02.680 --> 00:02:08.160 But wait, then the French government clapped back, saying that Google couldn't just unilaterally 00:02:08.160 --> 00:02:13.600 decide not to show snippets. Their rationale was that Google had so much market power 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. 00:02:19.400 --> 00:02:23.880 In other words, France viewed Google's tactics as anti-competitive. 00:02:23.880 --> 00:02:27.800 What, Google anti-competitive? 00:02:27.800 --> 00:02:31.520 Google later reached an agreement in France where they would pay news sites 00:02:31.520 --> 00:02:34.960 in order to use the articles as part of news showcase, 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 00:02:40.840 --> 00:02:45.120 aimed at helping its own domestic media, which would force Google to pay for links 00:02:45.120 --> 00:02:49.200 to Australian news websites. And the legal situation wouldn't allow Google 00:02:49.200 --> 00:02:52.320 to simply remove those links instead of coughing up the money. 00:02:52.400 --> 00:02:55.440 Furthermore, the proposed law would also force Google 00:02:55.440 --> 00:03:00.120 to tell Australian news websites about any changes it makes to its algorithm. 00:03:00.120 --> 00:03:04.240 That's our secret algorithm. You see, many aspects of Google's search algorithm 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 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 00:03:13.560 --> 00:03:17.240 completely if the law passes. For now, though, the Australian government 00:03:17.240 --> 00:03:22.280 seems undeterred, highlighting the possibility they've been galvanized by what happened in France 00:03:22.280 --> 00:03:26.520 one of EU's largest countries. Google, however, notes that the French deal 00:03:26.520 --> 00:03:30.760 didn't require them to pay for hyperlinks, while the Australian bill does, 00:03:30.760 --> 00:03:35.720 making it more of a burden than a joey that refuses to leave the pouch. 00:03:35.720 --> 00:03:38.720 That's stupid. Of course, it isn't just Google shareholders 00:03:38.720 --> 00:03:42.800 that are worried about laws such as these. Many advocates for a free and open internet 00:03:42.800 --> 00:03:47.320 are concerned that link taxes could threaten how the web fundamentally operates. 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 00:03:51.880 --> 00:03:57.280 knocking on elementary school doors demanding payment for like little Johnny's show and tell 00:03:57.280 --> 00:04:01.200 about the cheese festival article he cut out and shared with the class. 00:04:01.200 --> 00:04:05.080 Come on, Google, think of Johnny's cheese. 00:04:05.080 --> 00:04:09.200 And one more thing to think about. Maybe think about me saying to you, 00:04:09.200 --> 00:04:12.680 thanks for watching this video, huh? Think about liking the video. 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. 00:04:16.880 --> 00:04:20.200 Check out our other videos and comment below with video suggestions. 00:04:20.200 --> 00:04:25.760 And don't forget to think about subscribing and following us and then doing it.