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Google Begins Removing AFP From Google News
An anonymous reader writes "Google has began removing web-based content of Paris-Based news agency Agence France Presse (AFP), from the Google News service. This past weekend we reported that the Agence France Presse had sued Google for displaying their photo's, stories, and news headlines on Google News without permission. AFP is seeking damages of around $17.5 million and requested the courts that Google News is not to display any of its copyrighted material. It appears Google is complying with what the AFP is requesting. Google doesn't have a timetable for when all AFP links and content will be removed from Google News, but the company is actively working on the matter, said Steve Langdon, a Google spokesman."
* Google is a search engine.
They're helping these idiots get customers. Free advertising.
If you're not on Google, you won't be found.
So now they won't be found. They'll fold, but be secure in the knowledge that Google didn't show a few pictures to guide potential customers to them.
No wonder the French wine industry is in the toilet... they can't even sell wine anymore.*
dude idiot, you got any fucking idea what afp's main area of business is? they don't sell to customers that would find them through google. if you're so stupid you don't know what news agencies do for living go hide under a rock and ask afp to make you a celebrity.
world was created 5 seconds before this post as it is.
I didn't realize you Francophiles were so sensitive. Those cheese eating surrender monkey fans now post anonymously too.
They're French, I believe. But I'm guess in my scientifical mind... Reuters = liberal, French media outlet, that doesnt allow use of the word "terrorist" and is anti-Bush. AFP = conservative, french media outlet, that allows terrorist word use and hates Bush too or they're just inept libreals who are afraid of the net, or they're greedy bastards.
In America, you spam computers In Soviet Russia, computers spam you!
yankdot is really a slimy shit.
And for you morons, AFP is not a dotcom that makes money through its website.
Hey, we're a news agency in France, and a global orginization is using our information to increase our exposure and reach hundreds of times over.
Option 1: Work out a deal with the global orginization, so we can keep this incredible exposure and hopefully make a few bucks out of too.
Option 2: Sue the global orginization so we can make a few bucks then go back to inernational obscurity.
Ahh, the French. Nous sommes stupides, mais les gens nous prennent toujours au sérieux.
The Internet is generally stupid
Hell, the Beeb broadcasts in multiple languages. AFP is nothing like the Beeb. The Beeb could get along quite well without Google News and to their credit they have a pretty good internet strategy (the one exception being their use of RealPlayer, whose dick got sucked in that deal anyways?). I say this as an American who pays 16 bucks a month for XM satellite radio pretty much for the sole purpose of being able to listen to BBC World Service in my car and at home. AFP is going to do as well in the internet age as Minitel did, and they're going to get their asses handed to them by services such as Reuters which don't get their panties in a twist about being linked to from Google news.
cheap labor conservatives - they want to keep you hungry enough to be thankful for minimum wage.
Google is not a news organization. They are an aggregator. Aggregators are GOOD for real news organizations. How the hell else would I ever hear of AFP? I wouldn't. I would never have any reason to go to their site unless I got a link to an interesting article via Google or Yahoo! AFP sems to be headed by the same Frenchies who thought the Maginot Line would be effective.
What is your penile percentile?
The first thing I'd do is point out to the world that the Internet is a web.
The second thing I'd do is point out that if you don't want your information linked on the web, simply don't put it on the web.
The last thing I'd do is wipe France clean off the earth. But that goes without saying.
If someone says he and his monkey have nothing to hide, they almost certainly do.
"We surrender"?
Sorry! No, really, I love the French.
--Rob
Towards the Singularity.