PARIS: France’s antitrust watchdog slapped a 500 million euro ($593 million) fine on Alphabet’s Google on Tuesday for failing to comply with the regulator’s orders on how to conduct talks with the country’s news publishers in a row over copyright.
The fine comes amid increasing international pressure on online platforms such as Google and Facebook to share more revenue with news outlets.
The US tech group must now come up with proposals within the next two months on how it would compensate news agencies and other publishers for the use of their news. If it does not do that, the company would face additional fines of up to 900,000 euros per day.
Google said it was very disappointed with the decision but would comply.
“Our objective remains the same: we want to turn the page with a definitive agreement. We will take the French Competition Authority’s feedback into consideration and adapt our offers,” the US tech giant said.
A Google spokesperson added: “We have acted in good faith throughout the entire process. The fine ignores our efforts to reach an agreement, and the reality of how news works on our platforms.”
News publishers APIG, SEPM and AFP accuse the tech company of having failed to hold talks in good faith with them to find common ground for the remuneration of news content online, under a recent European Union directive that creates so-called “neighboring rights.”
The case itself focused on whether Google breached temporary orders issued by the antitrust authority, which demanded such talks take place within three months with any news publishers that ask for them.
“When the authority decrees an obligation for a company, it must comply scrupulously, both in the spirit and letter (of the decision). Here, this was unfortunately not the case,” the antitrust body’s chief, Isabelle de Silva, said in a statement. She also said the regulator considered that Google had not acted in good faith in its negotiations with the publishers.
APIG, which represents most major French print news publishers including Le Figaro and Le Monde, remains one of the plaintiffs, even though it signed a framework agreement with Google earlier this year, sources have told Reuters. This framework deal has been put on hold pending the antitrust decision, the sources said.
The framework agreement, which many other French media outlets criticized, was one of the highest-profile deals under Google’s “News Showcase” program to provide compensation for news snippets used in search results, and the first of its kind in Europe.
Google agreed to pay $76 million over three years to a group of 121 French news publishers to end the copyright row, documents seen by Reuters showed.
It followed months of bargaining between Google, French publishers and news agencies over how to apply the revamped EU copyright rules, which allow publishers to demand a fee from online platforms showing extracts of their news.
France fines Google 500 million euros over copyright row
https://arab.news/vykjy
France fines Google 500 million euros over copyright row
- France fines Google 500 million euro fo failing to comply with the regulator over copyright issues.
- Google must comply with new rules or will risk getting additional fines of up to 900,000 euros per day.
Gems of Arabia magazine launched to spotlight talents shaping Saudi Arabia’s evolving cultural landscape
- The publication features established and emerging talents elevating the region across design, fashion, art, tech, music, architecture and media
- Saudi fashion designer Hatem Alakeel seeks to highlight the richness of the Kingdom, and wider modern Arab culture to global audiences
DUBAI: When Saudi fashion designer Hatem Alakeel interviewed Princess Reema bint Bandar Al-Saud before her appointment as Saudi ambassador to the US, the longtime advocate of women’s empowerment made a powerful prediction: “I look forward to the day that the Saudi woman is no longer the story but rather a phenomenal achievement.”
That moment would become the foundation for Gems of Arabia, an arts and culture audio-visual podcast that spotlights the creative talents shaping the landscape of Saudi Arabia and the broader region.
Over six years, Gems of Arabia has documented the sweeping transformation of the Kingdom’s art and culture scene, and is now evolving into a full-fledged magazine.
“It started off as a column I used to write, and from there, it turned into a podcast. Now it is growing into a magazine,” Dubai-based Alakeel, the magazine’s founder and editor-in-chief, told Arab News ahead of the launch of the digital publication on Thursday.
Besides spotlighting celebrated regional artists, Alakeel said Gems of Arabia is in search of the “hidden gems” elevating the region across design, fashion, art, tech, music, architecture and media.
The magazine serves as a platform for talented, authentic creatives and tech entrepreneurs unable to articulate their work “because they don’t have the public relations or capacity to promote themselves even through social media.”
Alakeel added: “Our job is to identify all these authentic people; you don’t have to be famous, you just have to be authentic, and have a great story to tell.”
The digital publication offers a dynamic blend of short-form podcasts, coverage of regional cultural events, in-depth features and editorials, long-form interviews and artist profiles — spotlighting both celebrated and emerging talents. This is complemented by social media vox pops and bite-sized coverage of art events across the region.
Alakeel, who also runs Authenticite, a consulting and creative production agency connecting creators and brands who want to understand Saudi culture, said the magazine content is “carefully curated” to feature topics and personalities that resonate in the region.
What differentiates Gems of Arabia, he said, is its story of continuity and substance amassed over the years that has captured the evolution of the wider regional landscape.
“The website represents an archive of nearly 150 articles compiled through years of podcasts and long-form conversations that show continuity and depth changes,” he said.
“So, it’s an evolution and it’s another home for all our content and our community.”
Growing up in France, Alakeel said his mission started early on when he felt the need to represent his Saudi culture “in a way where it can hold its own internationally.”
Through his first brand, Toby, he sought to bring the traditional thobe into modern designs and introduce it to the luxury fashion world. This mission was accomplished when his thobe designs were placed alongside global labels such as Harvey Nichols, Dolce & Gabbana and Prada.
What began as a personal design mission would soon expand into a broader platform to champion Saudi talent.
“I was articulating my culture through fashion and it just felt natural to do that through the incredible people that the region has,” Alakeel said, adding that the magazine aims to highlight the richness of the Kingdom, and wider modern Arab culture to global audiences.
“Art is such a great way of learning about a culture and a country,” he said.
On the ground in Saudi Arabia, the publication hosts GEMS Forum, a series of live cultural gatherings that bring together prominent artistic figures for in-depth conversations later transformed into podcast episodes recorded with a live audience.
Alakeel said the print edition of Gems of Arabia will debut in March, designed as a collectible coffee-table quarterly distributed across the Gulf.
He envisions the platform growing into a long-term cultural record.
“It's a Saudi-centric magazine, but the idea is to make it inclusive to the region and everyone authentic has a seat at the table,” said Alakeel.
