People Inc. CEO Accuses Google of Misusing Publisher Content
People Inc., previously known as Dotdash Meredith, is facing significant challenges regarding the use of publisher content by Google. At the Fortune Brainstorm Tech conference, Neil Vogel, the CEO, expressed concerns over Google’s use of publisher material to support its AI products without fair compensation. He described Google’s strategy as evidence of being an intentional bad actor.
Google’s Reliance on a Single Crawler
Vogel stated that Google employs one crawler, which it uses interchangeably to index websites for search and extract data for AI applications. This dual use of the crawler raises ethical concerns regarding the appropriation of content. He noted, “Google has one crawler, which means they use the same crawler for their search, where they still send us traffic, as they do for their AI products, where they steal our content.”
Shifting Traffic Dynamics
Vogel highlighted a concerning trend for People Inc. regarding Google’s distribution of web traffic. Three years ago, Google Search was responsible for about 65 percent of the traffic, a figure that has now decreased to the high 20s. He also mentioned that, in the past, Google’s share of traffic reached as high as 90 percent.
Publisher Leverage in the AI Landscape
Vogel insisted on the necessity for publishers to have leverage within the AI landscape. In response, People Inc. has allied with Cloudflare to restrict access for AI crawlers that do not compensate for content. He revealed that the company has already secured an agreement with OpenAI, which he referred to as a responsible entity.
Ongoing Negotiations with AI Providers
While he refrained from naming specific companies, Vogel mentioned that several large language model (LLM) providers had reached out after People Inc. began to block their crawlers, although no contracts have yet been established.
The Dilemma with Google’s Crawler
According to Vogel, the significant issue lies in the fact that Google’s crawler cannot be blocked without hindering traffic from Google Search. He stressed this point, asserting, “They know this, and they’re not splitting their crawler. So they are an intentional bad actor here.”
Support from Other Industry Leaders
Janice Min, CEO of Ankler Media, lent her support to Vogel’s statements, describing tech giants like Google and Meta as content kleptomaniacs. She mentioned her company completely blocks AI crawlers. Additionally, Cloudflare’s CEO Matthew Prince, who was also present on the panel, urged publishers not to depend solely on copyright law to combat AI scraping.
The Future of Content Compensation
Prince pointed out that derivative works are often protected under fair use and forecasted that Google will eventually need to compensate content creators for AI training. He criticized Google’s role in encouraging publishers to focus on traffic at the expense of content quality, remarking, “Everything that’s wrong with the world today is, at some level, Google’s fault.”
