Could Google really pull its search engine from an entire country?

Last year we were tracking developments involving the Australian government and Google, who were at a loggerheads with regard to the News Media Bargaining Code that the former was proposing. The Code would seek for news publishers in the country to have more say over how content is distributed, as well as their share of the profits.

More specifically that advertising links on stories and content are paid for by Google.

Google, however, argues that the Code will also involve data sharing and a potentially unfair advantage for larger publishers compared to smaller ones. This is something that the Australian government has since denied, confirming that no data sharing will take place.

Now the company is saying that if Australia moves ahead with the law, it will be forced to remove its services as a result.

Full story: htxt.co.za

Hypertext