Google’s parent company Alphabet recently unveiled its decision to reopen Google News, despite being banned for eight years in Spain.
The new launch was revealed on Wednesday which really took so many people by surprise.
In case you’re wondering why it was shut down in the first place, well, it had to do with a simple rule in Spain that forced the firm and a series of other news outlets to make payments to various publishers if they planned on using little snippets of their articles.
Last year, we saw Madrid make head waves when it opted to transpose those regulations belonging to the European Union and its rules related to copyright matters. Despite being modified in 2020, we saw it get passed into legislation.
Therefore, that meant so many news outlets were now forced to deal with the tech giant on a direct basis and carry out any negotiations that they deemed to be necessary in this regard.
The news was definitely a little shocking and hence Google was left with no choice but announced last year that it would now be thinking along the lines of reopening the app by 2022. Hence, it appears as if that time has finally arrived.
Clearly, the fact that the Spanish Government is willing to amend its own rules means great business and a golden opportunity for Google and they’re definitely going to make the most of it.
The country manager for Google Spain confirmed the news via a public post recently where he said Google News will now be giving out links to all relevant and trending stories by next year.
For the time being, the app will be working side by side with different publishers to reach a consensus regarding their rights that coincide with the new regulations in place.
The news comes just in time for Google News’ 20th-anniversary celebrations and we feel there’s no better treat after such a long duration hiatus than this.
H/T: Reuters.
Read next: Google Reveals Handy And Secure Shortcut That Saves All Your Passwords For Apps And Websites
The new launch was revealed on Wednesday which really took so many people by surprise.
In case you’re wondering why it was shut down in the first place, well, it had to do with a simple rule in Spain that forced the firm and a series of other news outlets to make payments to various publishers if they planned on using little snippets of their articles.
Last year, we saw Madrid make head waves when it opted to transpose those regulations belonging to the European Union and its rules related to copyright matters. Despite being modified in 2020, we saw it get passed into legislation.
Therefore, that meant so many news outlets were now forced to deal with the tech giant on a direct basis and carry out any negotiations that they deemed to be necessary in this regard.
The news was definitely a little shocking and hence Google was left with no choice but announced last year that it would now be thinking along the lines of reopening the app by 2022. Hence, it appears as if that time has finally arrived.
Clearly, the fact that the Spanish Government is willing to amend its own rules means great business and a golden opportunity for Google and they’re definitely going to make the most of it.
The country manager for Google Spain confirmed the news via a public post recently where he said Google News will now be giving out links to all relevant and trending stories by next year.
For the time being, the app will be working side by side with different publishers to reach a consensus regarding their rights that coincide with the new regulations in place.
The news comes just in time for Google News’ 20th-anniversary celebrations and we feel there’s no better treat after such a long duration hiatus than this.
H/T: Reuters.
Read next: Google Reveals Handy And Secure Shortcut That Saves All Your Passwords For Apps And Websites
