Google asks OFT to relax newspaper merger rules
Google has written a letter to the Office of Fair Trading asking it to relax rules governing UK newspaper mergers.
Google said that it would be supportive of publishers wanting to merge with local and regional newspapers to create competition for the search engine and online content aggregators.
The OFT is currently reviewing the existing merger rules as part of the Digital Britain whitepaper, and is expected to publish its decision in June.
Matt Brittin, the managing director of Google UK, said in the letter: “Google supports the position of many newspapers for the need to allow for a 21st century merger regime, allowing local and regional news services to merge and consolidate in order to create… competitive news offerings.”
He added: “Google works closely with many newspapers to help them build an online audience and to assist them in making money from targeted online advertising.”
“We are always working to improve our technology so that online users see more relevant advertising, and consequently publishers can earn a greater return on their efforts.”
Speaking at a convention in April, Google CEO Eric Schmidt said that newspapers were wrong to claim that internet aggregators were misappropriating news organisations’ material (see Google CEO: “Newspapers must work with aggregators”).
He added that “the only solution” Google could see for the newspaper industry was for it to work with search engines and online aggregators.