Google's impact on UK independent publishing – 2nd round survey

The Independent Media Association (IMA), Independent Community News Network (ICNN) and the Independent Publishers Alliance (IPA) are launching a second survey on how Google impacts publishing in the UK.

This survey aims to fill some gaps in our data, particularly in terms of web traffic and revenue. This data is vital to establish a robust valuation that we can take into negotiations with Google.

On 10 October, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced that Google now holds Strategic Market Status (SMS) under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCCA). In practice, this means the regulator is treating Google as a digital monopoly.

That designation opens a new chapter for our coalition – we can now sit down with Google in formal negotiations. The CMA hasn’t released the accompanying Conduct Requirements yet, so the exact procedural rules (fairness, timelines, standards, dispute‑resolution mechanisms, etc.) are still unknown.

The Conduct Requirements are important – we don’t want Google to be negotiating in bad faith, or drag out negotiations, and generally make it more difficult to negotiate with them. Until those guidelines appear, we’re in a holding pattern: ready to negotiate, but waiting for the final rulebook. We expect to know what the guidelines are in January.

However, this gives us time to collect the remaining data we need to build a strong negotiating position. The survey has been designed by Professor Haaris Mateen from the University of Houston, together with the IMA, ICNN and IPA.

IMA members will receive a link to participate in the survey over the coming days.

How collective bargaining with Google works

The Digital Markets, Competition, and Consumers Act 2024 is a UK law designed to regulate powerful digital companies and ensure fair competition. It introduces new rules for large tech firms and strengthens consumer protections.

A key aspect of the Act is the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) can designate large digital firms (e.g., Google, Meta) as having Strategic Market Status (SMS) if they hold significant market power. SMS firms face tougher rules to prevent them from unfairly dominating markets.

The CMA can enforce conduct requirements on SMS firms to prevent unfair behaviour, such as preferential treatment of their own services or blocking competition. The CMA has powers to impose fines for non-compliance.The Act explicitly allows smaller businesses, including news publishers, to form coalitions to negotiate better terms with SMS firms. This means publishers can work together to push for fairer payments and treatment from platforms like Google and Meta.

We need the research from the survey to produce a valuation that we can stand by. If Google fails to engage with us fairly, we can go to the Digital Markets Unit (DMU) and they will investigate and if they agree then they will intervene and arbitrate between us. Their arbitration will allow us to unlock a fair offer if Google doesn’t engage fairly.

Having a strong dataset to back up our position is essential for making our case to Google, and to the DMU.