Google News Showcase Might Be Removed From Search

Trying to end the investigation in Germany, Google decides to remove from the search results Google News Showcase. The service works with independent publishers who want to share their journalistic research online. According to the company, access to the news will be available but based on certain criteria of objectivity.

The investigation was started by a German antitrust regulator and leads to Google’s decision to exclude the news from main search results. According to the statement made by Federal Cartel Authority head Andreas Mundt, Google offered to take measures in response to the concerns of the officials on the competition. Google will not keep Showcase in the basic search results. The German regulator decided to consult with the publishing sector to find out whether the proposed measures will be helpful.

Google did not make any official comments on this situation. News Showcase from Google appeared on the German market back in 2020. It was created to help journalists to provide their own investigations and publish them online more freely. Google planned to include the Google News Showcase in the search results on the main page for a bigger audience. However, the situation has changed after the Corint Media publishing group filed a complaint. According to the publisher, there was a possibility that news publishers that did not sign contracts with Google may see their content lowered down in the search results.

Corint spokesperson said that there is a fear that Google News Showcase integration with the main page of search results was designed to turn users' attention rather on the new service and the content it provides. It means that Google would receive the monopoly over the news revealed in the search results.

How often do you use Google News Showcase? Do you agree with German media complaints? You can share your thoughts in the comments below.