The start of an online business model-get Google to pay

There is one set of businesses that are making money out of the new media and that is the providers of the information.

Yesterday's news that The Newspaper Society and the Society Of Editors have written to the culture secretary to stop Google using their content without paying for it may be the first step in what may become at least part of the model for online news sustainability.

The letter to Andy Burnham asked

Recognising that news gathering, the collection of raw material for any media organisation, is especially expensive, ministers could look urgently for effective ways in which Google and others could be prevented from profiting from third party content without recompense to or consent from those who generated the material. This would also be of value to other parts of the media.

It was one of a number of measures that the society believes should be used to help the media including

1. issuing guidance to discourage local government publications and websites that compete directly with and undermine local papers.

2.Getting local and national government to advertise jobs and services in local papers and their websites. and

3.Investing public funds for training directly with media companies and training organisations.