Google cuts deal with state lawmakers to pay news outlets; publishers call it ‘a first step’

CALIFORNIA LAWMAKERS ARE abandoning an ambitious proposal to force Google to pay news companies for using their content, opting instead for a deal in which the tech giant has agreed to pay $172 million to support local media outlets and start an artificial intelligence program.

The first-in-the-nation agreement, announced this past Wednesday, promises $175 million for local journalism across California over the next five years, but represents a significant departure from the bill pushed by news publishers and media employee unions earlier this year.