CNN and Google have struck a multi-year partnership to help figure out how Google’s generative AI products can help boost engagement with its journalism.
The deal appears to be early, as both sides have not revealed exactly how CNN will incorporate Google’s AI efforts to drive audiences toward its journalism. But Sam Felix, the network’s senior vice president of strategic partnerships and business development, said in a statement on Thursday the partnership would unlock “new pathways for audiences to access CNN’s unparalleled journalism while being compensated for the delivery and use of our unique intellectual property in connection with AI products.”
“Google’s innovation with generative AI has changed how people discover information and content, and now those tools will help us explore new ways to discover and engage audiences,” Felix said in a statement.
CNN emphasized in its press release that the deal reflected its push to safeguard its journalism in the AI era, coming months after it sued Perplexity AI for copyright infringement after both companies failed to reach a licensing deal.
The deal is part of Google’s pilot program to incorporate its AI to help boost news organizations’ traffic, one that has included global outlets such as Der Spiegel, El País, The Guardian, the Times of India, the Washington Examiner and the Washington Post. It comes as news organizations have highlighted how the company’s AI summaries have eaten into their web traffic, prompting some news publishers — including Penske Media Corporation, Variety’s parent company — to sue Google over the decline. (The Penske suit was dismissed by a federal judge last week.)
