News media lobby group says Google concerns about Online News Act are valid
BNN Bloomberg
A lobby group for Canada's newspapers and magazines says it agrees with many of the issues raised by Google about a law that will force the tech giant to compensate those same publishers for use of their work.
The concerns Google publicly outlined last week about the Online News Act are helpful, said Paul Deegan, head of News Media Canada, in a statement Thursday.
"Google’s submission is a welcome, clear, constructive, good faith articulation of legitimate concerns," he said.
Deegan said News Media Canada, which represents hundreds of publications, agrees with Google that there should be a cap on how much it would have to pay under the law, that compensation could go beyond direct payments to also include things like training and that there need to be incentives to make sure Google and publishers come together to reach deals.