After announcing its engineering office's closing in Russia, some part of Google is once again bidding farewell to another country, and this time it is Spain.
Google News closed it doors in Spain after a new law was introduced by the Spanish Government. The new law, according to reports, will mandate the Internet giant to pay for snippets of news content published in the country. Google posted its 'adios' on its blog on Dec. 11 about the forthcoming closure, which happened Tuesday..
According to the new legislation, Spanish publications will charge even for a bit of content preview that is shown on online news services such as Google News' search engine.
"As Google News itself makes no money (we do not show any advertising on the site) this new approach is simply not sustainable. So it's with real sadness that on 16 December (before the new law comes into effect in January) we'll remove Spanish publishers from Google News, and close Google News in Spain," Google posted on its European blog.
Head of Google News Richard Gingras went on to say that news publications used to have very limited avenues in distributing their stories. Google's news service, according to him, has enabled many publishers to surpass that hurdle. It is undeniable how the online search engine has brought more readers to news websites around the globe, and Spain was no exception, Gingras added.
Netizens, readers, and publishers in Spain were not very pleased with Google News Spain closing down. Many have expressed their dismay as the online news service was their main tool for searching for top and breaking news, as well as increasing site visits.
Below are some comments from Google News Spain's fans:
"Very sad. It is disaster for the PR sector, as Google News is our main tool to collect pieces of coverage from our clients. Sure, we can (and we do) rely on the "normal" searches, as well as other paid services for that task, but honestly, Google News always was extremely useful."
"Well done Google. If the Spanish government and old-style media want to go back to the Middle Age, this is what they will get. I really hope they come to their senses and suspend that nonsense law."
"It's really a very sad day for internet in Spain. He has won the greed of some media and the shortsightedness of the government. And the worst of all it's that every media, blog, big or small, etc are going to be the real losers."
