Google agrees to pay $40 million to South African news outlets over reducing content visibility
Google has agreed to provide more than $40 million in support to South African news organisations following findings by the country’s Competition Commission (CompCom) that the tech giant limited search engine monetisation opportunities that traditionally sustained these outlets.
CompCom revealed the agreement in its final report, released on Thursday, outlining the inquiry and its key conclusions.
According to the report, the investigation determined that Google—alongside other major global platforms such as Meta and Microsoft—dominates critical digital gateways through which South Africans access information.
The inquiry highlighted that Google holds a powerful market position, with news content accounting for 5–10 percent of user queries and significantly contributing to engagement that is monetised through commercial advertising.
“Google does however not compensate South African media for the news content it displays or summarises. Referral traffic to media websites has declined sharply as users increasingly consume AI-generated summaries or remain on Google’s own platforms,” the report said.
It also noted that Google’s algorithms tend to favour large foreign publishers over local or vernacular outlets, widening visibility and advertising inequality.
Additionally, the report found that the SABC relies heavily on YouTube for content distribution but earns limited revenue-share compensation, while social media algorithms amplify misinformation by promoting sensational content over credible reporting—leaving media organisations to shoulder the social costs of countering false narratives.
CompCom said the agreement with Google and YouTube followed “extensive engagement and two months of negotiations” that produced a “comprehensive package of remedies designed to restore fairness, transparency, and sustainability in South Africa’s media ecosystem”.
At the centre of this solution is a $40.2 million (688 million rand) support package for national, community, and vernacular media, delivered through content licensing, innovation grants, and capacity-building programmes.
As part of the deal, Google will introduce new user tools to highlight local news sources, offer technical support to boost website performance, share improved audience analytics, and establish an African News Innovation Forum.
CompCom added that Microsoft also displayed a foreign-leaning bias in its MSN news service by contracting only a small number of South African publishers. Following engagements, Microsoft will expand its MSN contracts to include five additional national outlets.