Semafor

Publishers Threaten to Block Google Crawlers

Publishers are again threatening to block Google’s crawlers and de-index themselves as AI-powered search features increasingly answer queries on-platform, reducing referral traffic and ad supply. While some publishers — especially those with subscriptions or diversified traffic — are modeling life without Google referrals, most remain dependent on search and fear the traffic and revenue losses that de-indexing could cause. Historical attempts (e.g., Axel Springer in 2014, Spain’s publishers) show rapid traffic declines after restricting Google. Reuters says it is continuously evaluating the trade-off. Google has agreed to comply with the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority ruling to give publishers an opt-out from AI features while keeping search placement, with implementation due next year. Industry data cited include a reported publisher ad supply drop of up to 40% in Q2 2026 and other metrics from NewzDash, Cloudflare and HasData.

News Corp Sues Brave Over AI Copyright Claims

News Corp has filed a federal lawsuit against Brave Software alleging that Brave’s AI features and search capabilities systematically infringe News Corp’s copyrighted news content. The complaint focuses on Brave’s AI sidebar and search, claiming Brave hid web crawlers to harvest articles and produced summaries that closely mirror original texts, then sold access to scraped content to enterprise AI clients. News Corp says these practices predate March 2025, undercut its licensing efforts, and harm the economic incentives for quality journalism. The dispute follows failed licensing negotiations and prior cross-litigation in which Brave asserted fair use for indexing. The outcome could set legal precedent on web crawling, transformative use in AI, and content licensing for AI-powered search tools.

Semafor Bets on 'Anti-Scale' Video

Semafor is expanding its video operation and has hired Adam Banicki, formerly general manager of video at Fortune Media, as its first head of video. Banicki — who spent more than five years at The Wall Street Journal — will run both editorial and commercial sides of Semafor’s video business and report to chief commercial officer Rachel Oppenheim. The four‑year‑old publisher, which generated $40 million in 2025 and raised $30 million at a $330 million valuation earlier this year, is pursuing an "anti‑scale" approach that prioritizes high-value C‑suite audiences and long‑term sponsor integrations (Google and PwC are cited as sponsors) rather than volume-driven pre/mid‑roll advertising. Semafor’s video revenue has grown 150% year over year and the company has at least five new shows in development as it integrates video with its events business.