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Google News Showcase launched in late 2020 and gives publishers who sign up for the licensing program a new way to share their editorial voice and expertise.
And the best part?
The program is a way for publishers to be paid for their digital content.
There have been disputes between Australia and Google, and France and Google about remuneration for showcasing publishers’ content online.
In an announcement about the launch of the new program made on the 25th June 2020, Brad Bender, VP, Product Management at Google, News, wrote:
“This program will help participating publishers monetize their content through an enhanced storytelling experience that lets people go deeper into more complex stories, stay informed and be exposed to a world of different issues and interests.”
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When the Google News Showcase was launched, publishers within Brazil, Germany, and Australia had signed up.
Now, the list also includes publications from India, Canada, Italy, France, Czechia, the U.K., Japan, Argentina, and more.
Additionally, of those already signed up, over 90% represent community, regional or local news organizations.
What Do Austrian Publications Think About Joining The Google News Showcase?
Austria is the latest in a long line of countries signing up and publishing their content within the Google News Showcase.
Gino Cuturi, who is the Managing Director of a leading regional newspaper in Upper Austria, has spoken about their aim:
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“We aim to get even more readers excited about our digital products and to convince them of our local reporting in the long term.”
Hermann Petz, CEO of Tiroler Tageszeitung also stated:
“Experience shows that there is still great potential for regional daily newspapers to attract occasional digital readers and then develop them into regular readers…We see Google News Showcase as an opportunity to expand and monetize this ‘widest circle of readers.’”
Benefits Of Google News Showcase For Publishers
If publications publish their content behind a paywall, Google will pay for user access to this, allowing stories to reach more audiences who have previously been unwilling to pay for content.
Publications can curate the appearance of their content within the program through News Showcase panels.
Panels can include:
- Key facts in a list format
- Important stories of the day
- Timelines
- Related articles
That is digestible and easy for readers to access and gain greater insights into news articles.
The program also provides publishers more control over their voice and brand across other Google products.
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Google News Showcase readers can connect and follow specific publishers, and the panels will act as a bridge to the publishers’ websites, potentially increasing traffic and subscriptions.
According to the announcement from Google, by sending readers to the website of the publications, the publishers can ‘deepen their relationships with readers’.
With so many countries and news publishers signing up to the showcase, it’s exciting to see who will be next to sign up.