For the unaware, the Google News Showcase is an online experience and licensing program that the company introduced in several markets around the world. This includes countries such as Germany, France, Canada, Brazil, Australia, the UK, and more. Google has teamed up with 30 major Indian news organizations, including The Hindu Group, NDTV, India TV, ABP Live, Express Group, Deccan Herald, Punjab Kesari, and others. So, following today, content from these Indian publishers will start appearing in dedicated News Showcase panels in Google News and Discover. The content will be in English or Hindi, as of now. However, Google says that it is committed to adding support for more regional languages in the coming days.
Moreover, as per the licensing agreements made with the news organizations, Google will let readers access some of the paywalled content from the partner organizations. This, as per the company, will give readers the “opportunity to read more of a publisher’s articles than they would otherwise be able to while deepening readers’ relationships with publishers and encouraging them to subscribe.” The News Showcase section is currently available in the Google News app on iOS and Android. You can open the app on your smartphone and go to “Newsstand” from the bottom bar to see the new “News Showcase” section at the top. “We are launching News Showcase now to help publishers reach people with trustworthy news, especially in this critical time with the Covid crisis continuing,” said Brad Bender, the Vice President of Product Management at Google.
