Partnership or patronage: Decoding Google’s $25-million payout to Indian media giants

On the surface, it might seem like a simple transaction: Google pays top Indian news publishers $25 million annually for their content through its News Showcase programme. But in the byzantine world of digital publishing, where algorithms shape public discourse as surely as editors once did, this figure represents something more complex—a token of appreciation that barely disguises a profound imbalance of power.

For over two decades, a peculiar dance has been unfolding between Google and India’s news publishers, with each step making the relationship increasingly asymmetrical. In a country where several thousand newspapers—from metropolitan broadsheets to regional dailies—still maintain their pride of place, Google has emerged as both benefactor and dominant player. 

It controls between 70-90% of web traffic to news sites and generates at least a third of digital advertising revenue for the top news producers, according to five executives working with leading news publishers and Google who did not wish to be identified.