Google to pay $40.2m to South African news outlets for reducing content visibility

Google has agreed to provide more than $40 million (approximately R688 million) in financial support to South African news organisations, following findings by the Competition Commission (CompCom) that the tech giant’s practices have undermined the revenue models of local media.

The agreement was detailed in CompCom’s final report, released on Thursday, concluding a multi-year inquiry into the dominance of global digital platforms including Google, Meta, and Microsoft in South Africa’s information ecosystem.

According to the report, Google continues to control the main gateways through which South Africans access online content. Although news makes up between 5% and 10% of all queries on the platform, and significantly boosts user engagement that Google monetises the company does not compensate publishers for displaying or summarising their content.

The inquiry also found that referral traffic to South African media sites has dropped sharply as users increasingly rely on AI-generated summaries or remain on Google-owned platforms rather than clicking through to publishers. Additionally, Google’s algorithms tend to prioritise major international outlets, limiting the visibility of local and vernacular news sources.

Public broadcaster SABC was highlighted as an example: despite depending heavily on YouTube for distribution, it earns minimal revenue from the platform.

CompCom further noted that social media algorithms across platforms amplify sensational or misleading content, contributing to the spread of misinformation—burdens that local newsrooms must absorb at significant cost

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Google will also roll out new tools to elevate local news sources, provide technical support to improve publishers’ website performance, share more detailed audience data, and help establish an African News Innovation Forum.

CompCom described the agreement as a major step toward addressing structural imbalances between global digital platforms and the South African media industry.