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Google Removing Links To California News Websites

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Google will begin removing links to California news websites from search engines for some Californians in response to a bill that would require online ad companies to pay a fee for connecting state residents to news sources, CNBC reported.

In a blog post on Friday announcing the “short-term test,” Jaffer Zaidi, Google’s vice president of global news partnership, said the bill, called the California Journalism Preservation Act, represents “the wrong approach to supporting journalism” and “would create a level of business uncertainty that no company would accept.”

The bill was introduced last year and remains pending in the state legislature.

The recent developments have upended many online publishers that count on Facebook and Google for traffic and are particularly painful for publications that rely on advertising revenue.

Jaffer Zaidi, VP of Global News Partnerships, posted information on The Keyword. Here are some key points:

A pending bill in the California state legislature, the California Journalism Preservation Act (CJPA) would create a “link tax” that would require Google to pay for simply connecting Californians to news articles. We have long said that this is the wrong approach to supporting journalism. If passed, CJPA may result in significant changes to the services we can offer Californians and the traffic we can provide to California publishers…

…To be clear, we believe CJPA undermines news in California. We don’t take these decisions lightly and want to be transparent with California publishers, lawmakers, and our users. To avoid an outcome where all parties lose and the California news industry is left worse off, we urge lawmakers to take a different approach…

Gizmodo reported Google began blocking access to California news outlets for some users in the state, according to an announcement from the tech giant on Friday. And it’s all because Google is upset about proposed legislation that would force the company to pay some publishers for their content, something it’s calling a “link tax.”

Known as the California Journalism Preservation Act (CJPA) the bill has passed Californias lower house, known as the Assembly, but still needs to be taken up by the state Senate and signed by Governor Gavin Newsom to become law. Newson hasn’t come out with an opinion on the legislation yet.

And while it’s certainly true that Google helps people find news stories, the problem is that much of the advertising money has gone to Big Tech platforms like Google and Facebook rather than the publishers who create the news content. That’s what this bill is trying to remedy in some way, forcing Google to pay publishers.

As a Californian, if CJPA passes and is signed into law, it likely won’t harm Californians. Google is not the only source of news online. DuckDuckGo, Mozilla’s Firefox, and Microsoft Edge can all be useful.

Google Pledges To Destroy Browsing Data To Settle ‘Incognito’ Lawsuit

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Google plans to destroy a trove of data that reflects millions of users’ web-browsing histories, part of a settlement of a lawsuit that alleged the company tracked people without their knowledge, The Wall Street Journal reported.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the class action lawsuit, filed in 2020, accused Google of misleading users about how Chrome tracked the activity of anyone who used the private “incognito” browsing option. The lawsuit alleged that Google’s marketing and privacy disclosures didn’t properly inform users of the kinds of data being collected, including details about which websites they viewed.

The settlement details, filed Monday in San Francisco federal court, set out the actions the company will take to change its practices around private browsing. According to the court filing, Google has agreed to destroy billions of data points that the lawsuit alleges it improperly collected, to update disclosures about what it collects in private browsing and to give users the option to disable third-party cookies in that setting.

The agreement doesn’t include damages for individual users. But the settlement will allow individuals to file claims. Already the plaintiff attorneys have filed 50 in California state court.

CBS News reported Google will destroy a vast trove of data as part of a settlement over a lawsuit that accused the search giant of tracking consumers even when they were browsing the web using “incognito” mode, which ostensibly keeps people’s online activity private.

The details of the settlement were disclosed Monday in San Francisco federal court, with a legal filing noting that Google will “delete and/or remediate billions of data records that reflect class members’ private browsing activities.”

The settlement stems from a 2020 lawsuit that claimed Google misled users into believing that it wouldn’t track their internet activities while they used incognito. The settlement also requires Google to change incognito mode so that users for the next five years can block third-party cookies by default.

“This settlement is an historic step in requiring dominant technology companies to be honest in their representations to users about how the companies collect and employ user data, and to delete and remediate data collected,” the settlement filing states.

“This settlement ensures real accountability and transparency from the world’s largest data collector and marks an important step toward improving and upholding our right to privacy on the internet,” the court document stated.

The Hill reported Google agreed to rewrite the disclosure that appears at the beginning of every “incognito mode” session to inform users that it collected data from private browsing sessions, according to court documents filed Monday.

“This settlement is an historic step in requiring dominant technology companies to be honest in their representations to users about how companies collect and employ user data, and to delete and remediate data collected,” the filing, submitted by the plaintiffs’ attorneys, reads.

In my opinion, Google shouldn’t have collected users data at all. Incognito mode was probably designed to imply that Google wouldn’t grab users data. Instead, Google grabbed it anyway.

Google Tests Removing The News Tab From Search Results

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News publishers are worried — with good reason —about changes coming to Google Search. AI-generated content replacing links on some of the most valuable space on the internet, in particular, has left media types with a lot of questions, starting with “is this going to be a traffic-destroying nightmare?” NeimanLab reported.

The News filter disappearing from Google search results for some users this week won’t help publishers sleep any easier.

Google confirmed some users were not seeing the News filter as part of ongoing testing. “We’re testing different ways to show filters on Search and as a result, a small subset of users were temporarily unable to access some of them,” a Google spokesperson said in an email.

9To5Google reported Google Search has long supported filtering search results into categories such as images, but one of the most useful is the “News” tab. For the past few months, Google Search has been testing shuffling those tabs around, but the company has now confirmed that it’s just a test and that the “News” tab won’t be removed permanently.

Wherever you do a Google search, you’ll se a bar across the top of the page, directly under the search bar, which has categories. The bar used to be static, showing Images and News prominently alongside other options. In recent months, though, Google has been shuffling this around, showing everything in a different order and, at times, even removing certain tabs altogether.

More often than not, the “News” tab was removed from Google search results, which can be frustrating as that tab is particularly good at surfacing recent results on a search term. The tab is also incredibly important for publishers, which can see significant traffic directed from Google.

Gizmodo titled its article: “Google Tests Killing the News” and reported that Google’s news filter disappeared for several users on Wednesday as they tested new versions of Search.

According to Gizmodo, the “News” tab has been a staple of Google Search for over 20 years, so when it disappeared on Wednesday, you can imagine how confused some users were. It turns out, Google was testing out a version of Search that did not include a “News” filter. The unannounced test caught many by surprise.

“We were testing different ways to show filters on Search and as a result, a small subset of users were temporarily unable to access some of them,” a Google Spokesperson told Gizmodo in a statement. Google says it was tryin to understand the preferences of its users, and it does not plan to remove the News filter. Apparently, people like News.

Gizmodo also reported that the “News” tab was the only filter missing for most Google Search users. In one case, Google offered a user “an AI-powered overview for this search,” instead of a news filter. This mall test could signal where Google Search is headed, as the company shoves Gemini into more of its style products.

In my opinion, it is not a good idea for a company as large as Google to remove the News tab (for some users) without warning. These kinds of shenanigans make it harder for users to trust Google. I miss the old days of Google, whose motto at that time was “Don’t Be Evil”.

Google To Pay $700 Million In Play Store Settlement

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Google parent Alphabet agreed to pay $700 million and make certain changes to its app store, settling one of several antitrust challenges to the search-engine company, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The settlement resolves claims by a group of states that Google operated its app store, Google Play, as an illegal monopoly, allegedly stifling competition from other app distributors using the Google-owned Android operating system.

Alphabet will contribute $630 million to a settlement fund distributed to benefit consumers, per a court-approved plan, and will pay $70 million into a fund used by the states, the company said.

Developers will also now be able to use an alternative billing system to Google Play’s billion option, which the company said it has been piloting for over a year. The settlement also requires that Alphabet simplify the process of downloading apps directly from developers’ websites without using an online store such as Google Play.

The suit by the states is one of several legal challenges claiming Alphabet illegally snuffed out competition. The company last week lost a case brought by videogame maker Epic Games, alleging that Alphabet had squeezed excess profit from app developers using its dominant position.

Google posted on The Keyword titled: “Reaffirming choice and openness on Android and Google Play. It was written by Wilson White, VP, Government Affairs & Public Policy. Here is some of what was written:

…Today, the details of a settlement reached in September with state attorneys general were filed publicly. The settlement builds on Android’s choice and flexibility, maintains strong security protections, and retains Google’s ability to compete with other OS makers, and invest in the Android ecosystem for users and developers. We’re pleased to resolve our case with the states and move forward to a settlement that includes:

Streamlining sideloading while prioritizing security: Unlike on iOS, Android users have the option to side load apps, meaning they can download directly from a developer’s website without going through an app store like Google Play. While we maintain it is critical to our safety efforts to inform users that side loading on mobile could come with unique risks, as part of our settlement we will be further simplifying the sideloading process and updating the language that informs users about these potential risks of downloading apps directly from the web for the first time.

Expanding user choice billing to more people: App and game developers will be able to implement an alternative billion option alongside Google Play’s billing system for their U.S. users who can then choose which option to use when making in-app purchases. We have been piloting user choice billing in the U.S. for over a year and will now expand this option further.

Contributing to a settlement fund: Google will pay $630 million into a settlement fund to be distributed for the benefit of consumers according to Court-approved plan and $70 million into a fund that will be used by the states.

In my opinion, it seems that when a large company is doing sketchy things, it ends up facing a court that, in some cases, alters the large company’s plans. This is likely the best way to handle things in order to protect consumers.

Google Bard Now Available For Teens – With Safety Features

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Following the Search Generative Experience (SGE) in September, Google is rolling out Bard access for teens with safety guardrails in place, 9to5Google reported.

This is coming to “most countries around the world” from Thursday onwards. It will specifically be available for those that “meet the minimum age requirement to manage their own Google Account” and have English set, while more languages are coming over time.

According to 9to5Google, Bard has been trained to “recognize areas that are inappropriate to younger users.” Safety features are in place to “prevent unsafe content, such as illegal or age-gated substances, from appearing in its responses to teens.”

When teenagers ask a fact-based question for the first time, Google will run the double-check response feature that “helps evaluate whether there’s content across the web to substantiate Bard’s response.” Bard will actively and continuously recommend that they use double-check to “help them develop information literacy and critical thinking skills.”

Google posted on The Keyword titled: “How we’ve created a helpful and responsible Bard experience for teens”. It was written by Tulsee Doshi, Head of Product, Responsible AI. From The Keyword:

Tomorrow, we’ll open up access to Bard to teenagers in most countries around the world. Teens in those countries who meet the minimum age requirement to manage their own Google Account will be able to access Bard in English, with more languages to come over time.

A helpful and informational tool for teens

Teens can use Bard to find inspiration, discover new hobbies, and solve everyday problems. For example, they could ask Bard for writing tips for a class president speech, suggestions for what universities to apply to, or ways to learn a new sport like pickleball.

Bard can also be a helpful tool for teens, allowing them to dig deeper into topics, better understand complex concepts and practice new skills in ways that work best for them. They could, for instance, ask Bard to help them brainstorm science fair project ideas or learn about a specific time period in history.

For even more interactive learning, we’re bringing a math experience into Bard. Anyone, including teens, can simply type or upload a picture of a math equations, and Bard won’t just give the answer – it will share step-by-step explanations of how to solve it.

Bard will be able to help with visualization, too. With this new capability, Bard can generate charts from tables or data included a prompt – like if a teen asks Bard to show in a bar chart how many hours they volunteered across a few month.

Both features will be in English to start…

TechCrunch reported that Google is opening up access to the chatbot with some guardrails in place to protect users. Bard has been trained to recognize topics that are inappropriate for teens and has guardrails that are designed to help prevent unsafe content, such as illegal or age-gated substances, from appearing in its response to teens.

In my opinion, Google appears to be making an effort to give teens a safe and reliable way to get their questions answered, be it about math problems, writing a speech, or choosing a university. This seems like a good thing, especially since Google’s Bard has been edited to avoid posting information that could be harmful to teens.

Google Photos’ Magic Editor Will Refuse To Make These Edits

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Google first announced Magic Editor at Google I/O 2023. The feature is now available inside the Google Photos app on the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, Android Authority reported. With Magic Editor, you can harness the power of generative AI to perform complex image edits with ease. This lowers the skill and experience barrier and democratizes complex image editing.

On the flip side, many have wondered if Google has adopted enough guardrails to prevent users from abusing Magic Editor. As it turns out, there are at least some guardrails present on Magic Editor, preventing users from making these kinds of edits.

Google Photos v6.60 includes code around various error messages that users would see when preforming a few prohibited Magic Editor edits. Magic Editor will refuse to edit:

Photos of ID cards, receipts, and other documents that violate Google’s GenAI terms

Images with personally identifiable information

Human faces and body parts

Large selections or selections that need a lot of data to be generated.

Mashable reported Google doesn’t want you potentially breaking laws with its Magic Editor app on Pixel phones.

Mashable noted that Android Authority combed through the latest Google Photos update and found strings of code to Magic Editor, the new Pixel 8 feature that lets you do some light Photoshop-esque things with just a few taps of the finger.

In reference to Magic Editor’s restrictions, Mashable reported this makes a lot of sense, so much so that you wonder why these error messages weren’t already present in Magic Editor at launch. Android Authority said an older version of the app did block it from making the above edits, but not all of them.

For what it’s worth, Magic Editor isn’t nearly as good at photo editing as someone with a deft Photoshop hand would be. Any kind of forged document made with it would probably be pretty easy to spot if you looked at it for a few seconds. But Google doesn’t want to take any risks, which is the right move.

Gizmodo reported that everyone’s talking about how creepy generative AI is, so Google Photos won’t let you edit pictures of your driver’s license, ID cards, or anything personally identifiable. If you try to use Magic Editor with a compatible Pixel device, Photos pops up a window to let you know it can’t complete the action since it may violate its terms of use.

According to Gizmodo, there is trepidation right now about the global foray into AI-powered editing. The fear seems centered chiefly around folks “faking” official documentation for nefarious purposes, like swapping out a photo on an ID card to gain access or buy something online. While those things happened in the past before artificial intelligence made it more accessible, the point was that it wasn’t so easy to do.

Personally, I think Google made the right choice with its Magic Editor. Those who want to use it for nefarious means will be thwarted by the AI itself. It should be noted that this affects Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro users.

A Recap Of Epic Games VS Google

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The first day of the Epic Games vs. Google antitrust trial ended after both sides gave opening statements and two witnesses testified, VentureBeat reported.

According to VentureBeat, Epic’s lead attorney Gary Bornstein opened with a chart that showed the Google Play Store accounted for 90% of app installs in the year the lawsuit was filed, 2020, despite the fact that Google “will say” that the Samsung app store is installed on 60% of all Android smartphones. But Bornstein noted that a tiny sliver of the market share belongs to Samsung.

Bornstein argued that Google pays actual potential competitors not to compete and gives them money and other things of value. Bornstein says this is anti-competitive.

Epic also said it knows that Google will argue that it allows “sideloading” of apps as an alternative to using the Google Play Store. But Epic Games said Google through hoops in the way of users who were considering sideloading. Epic said that Google’s 30% fee for its app store operating profit amount to $12 billion a year and carry a 70% margin, compared to 24% in 2014.

Bornstein said that Google’s codename for shady deals was Project Hug, where Google allegedly paid developers such as Riot Games not to compete with the Google Play Store.

Bornstein also said that because many of Google’s alleged anticompetitive acts started in 2019, Google didn’t need those things to protect its fledgling app store. Rather, it merely intended to protect its monopoly. He also said that Google doesn’t have a monopoly on making app downloading secure, and that side-loaded apps didn’t represent a real security threat.

CNBC reported that Google is headed back to court for its second antitrust trial in two months, this time in defense of its Android Play Store.

According to CNBC, while Google continues to argue against monopoly claims brought by the Department of Justice and a bipartisan group of states in Washington, D.C., District Court, the company now has to simultaneously face off against Epic Games in a federal court in San Francisco.

The trial involving Epic, which began Monday, revolted around Google’s treatment of third-party developers, and will be closely watched by Apple, which operates the rival iPhone App Store. Both companies have been accused by developers of taking an unfair cut of revenue from in-app payments and for making it harder for app creators to communicate with their customers.

An Epic victory could force Google to make changes to Android, where it charges a 15% to 30% fee on digital goods and services purchases within the apps. It could allow Epic to get its store pre-installed on devices, potentially making it easier for users to bypass Google’s store to download games.

CNBC reported that at issue with the DOJ’s monopoly case, which went to trial in September, is whether Google violated the law through exclusive agreements with mobile phone manufacturers and browser makers to make its search engine the default for consumers. That case could determine whether Google is able to continue using its heft to keep its prime positioning on smartphones.

It seems to me that the Epic vs Google case is one that seems to keep ending up in courtroom battles. Eventually, we will know the outcome of this particular case. But that might not be the end of this battle.