That’s according to a report Tuesday (Sept. 29) by The Information, which characterizes this pilot program as a sign that Google is shifting toward paying publishers for content that shows up in its search results.
As the report notes, Google’s past position was that it shouldn’t pay these publishers, arguing that the questions drive traffic to their websites.
Then came AI Overviews. The arrival of these artificial intelligence-powered summaries led to a sharp drop in the amount of traffic Google sends to these websites. This has led to complaints from publishers, along with some lawsuits.
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But this program is unlikely to end those complaints, the report said. Sources familiar with the payouts told The Information that many of the small to midsize blogs and websites testing the programs are getting payments that less than 0.1% of their ad revenue.
This has kept some larger publishers from using the program, the sources said, adding that these groups are holding out in hopes they can pressure Google and other companies to pay more for content used by AI.
Other publishers view the program as a way to gauge what content Google’s AI values so they can adapt accordingly, the report said. An executive at one participating publisher told The Information Google seems to be testing a new offer in which it uses publishers’ content and determines for itself what that content is worth.
Google started testing the program involving its AI Overviews, AI Mode and Gemini chatbot less than a year ago, said a person close to the company. Sources said payments have varied greatly, from $1,000 over the course of several months for smaller sites, while one early entrant in the program has made more than $1 million in a year.
The program is happening at a time when artificial intelligence increasingly determines what people seek and find online, as new PYMNTS Intelligence research shows.
The PYMNTS Intelligence report “The AI Power User Gets Pickier” found that 23% of U.S. consumers used AI for product discovery during the prior year. That figure jumps to 93% among AI adopters who research purchases. Researching and comparing products was the only one of 10 measured shopping activities in the study to show meaningful growth.
“That suggests AI technology is gaining traction when consumers decide what is worth considering in the first place,” PYMNTS wrote earlier this month. “Being recommended by an AI could fast become as important as ranking on a search page.”
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