Google France said in a statement it was
“very disappointed” by the decision, and
that the fine “doesn’t reflect the efforts
put in place or the reality of the use of
news content on our platform.” It said it is
negotiating in good faith toward a solution,
and that it’s on the verge of reaching an
agreement with some publishers.
The dispute is part of a larger effort by
authorities in the European Union and
around the world to force Google and other
tech companies to compensate publishers
for content.
The French antitrust agency had issued
temporary orders to Google in April 2020
to hold talks within three months with
news publishers, and fined the company for
breaching those orders.
“When the authority imposes injunctions
on companies, they are required to apply
them scrupulously, respecting their letter
and their spirit. In the present case, this was
unfortunately not the case,” the watchdog’s
president, Isabelle de Silva, said in a statement.
“Google’s negotiations with publishers and
press agencies cannot be regarded as having
been conducted in good faith.”
The company was forced to negotiate with
French publishers after a court last year
upheld an order saying such agreements
were required by a 2019 European Union
copyright directive. France was the first of
the bloc’s 27 nations to adopt the directive,
which lays out a way for publishers and news
companies to strike licensing deals with
online platforms.