Microsoft President Brad Smith. (GeekWire File Photo / Kevin Lisota)
Microsoft President Brad Smith isn’t done with the fight against Google yet.
In an interview with Bloomberg TV on Wednesday, Smith said that Google violated the concept of the open web and “sucked most of the oxygen out of opportunities for people who stopped creating content during a testimony to Congress last month.” make a living through advertising. “
Smith’s most recent blow comes almost three months after Microsoft first got into a dispute between Google and the Australian government after Google threatened to pull out of the country. Google fought a new law aimed at making tech giants negotiate payments with local publishers and broadcasters for content found in search results or news feeds.
Smith said the US could use such a law. Prior to a March 12 hearing for the House Justice Subcommittee, Smith advocated the Competition and Protection of Journalists Act (JCPA), which would allow news organizations to negotiate with technology companies.
Google said at the time that Microsoft is “returning to its trusted playbook of attacking rivals and advocating regulations that benefit their own interests”.
In Bloomberg’s interview on Wednesday, Smith maintained that US news organizations had ad sales of nearly $ 50 billion in 2005, a number he believes has fallen to $ 14 billion.
“Where’s all the money gone?” Smith asked before nodding to Alphabet’s latest earnings and $ 45 billion in digital advertising.
“Basically, Google has redesigned and revised the web. If you want to make money from ad-based content, you have to do it by sharing it, using the tools, and paying money to and through Google. Smith added.