Gingras also said Google News helps publishers attract traffic to their websites and that they can opt to remove their articles from the service if they wish. "The vast majority choose to be included for very good reason. Google News creates real value for these publications by driving people to their websites, which in turn helps generate advertising revenues," he said.
The ‘Google tax’ provision of Spain’s Intellectual Property Law reform is aimed squarely at news aggregators such as Google News, Reddit and Digg, in that it permits the reproduction of “non-significant fragments” without prior authorisation but requires the payment of “fair compensation” for doing so. The law creates an "inalienable right" for publishers to collect the levy via the country’s association of newspaper editors, AEDE, which has applauded the legislation, calling it “the most important step taken by the Spanish government for the protection of the press”.
The reform also aims to curb internet piracy by putting in place speedier processes to shut down offending sites, including a one-stop-shop for processing complaints related to copyright infringements. One of the amendments increases the maximum fine payable for “very serious” copyright infringement from EUR 300,000 to EUR 600,000.
