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posted by janrinok on Friday April 18 2014, @11:44PM   Printer-friendly
from the from-one-mogul-to-another dept.

The BBC reports:

The boss of one of Europe's largest media companies has strongly criticised Google in an open letter printed in a German newspaper. Axel Springer publishes more than 200 newspapers and magazines including German papers Die Welt and Bild. It also has a significant online presence and television and radio interests.

Mathias Dopfner, chief executive of Axel Springer, says his company is afraid of Google and its power. He also asks in the letter, addressed to Google boss Eric Schmidt, whether Google intends to create a superstate where anti-trust and privacy laws don't apply.

Google has not commented on the letter.

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  • (Score: 2) by Horse With Stripes on Saturday April 19 2014, @12:21AM

    by Horse With Stripes (577) on Saturday April 19 2014, @12:21AM (#33259)

    Mr Schmidt's column had referred to the advertising relationship between Axel Springer and the search company. He described how the relationship had been challenging at times but how now they had "walked down the aisle" and signed a multi-year deal.

    Mr Dopfner acknowledged that he was pleased at the marketing relationship between the two companies and an admirer of Google's entrepreneurial success but went on to say that the company had little choice but to engage with Google as "we know no search engine alternative to increase our online reach".

    So he's pleased with their agreements? He's complaining that partnering with Google was the only way to increase his business. Hmmm ...

    If Google was so "all powerful" as to be able to create a "superstate" that can ignore whichever laws it chooses then it would ignore tax laws before it ignored anti-trust and privacy laws. Dopfner is just unhappy that he can't think of any other way to increase his business without partnering with Google. Sounds to be like he needs to hire a few locals who have that famous German ingenuity and find another way to do it.

    I'm not saying Google isn't evil, but Dopfner can't have it both ways. He can't say the sex was great but complain he had to pay the hooker.

  • (Score: 3) by tathra on Saturday April 19 2014, @01:29AM

    by tathra (3367) on Saturday April 19 2014, @01:29AM (#33262)

    Mr Dopfner's comments were not just restricted to Google - the founder of social network Facebook also came under fire. He explained that he'd been at a conference when someone asked Mark Zuckerberg how Facebook stored data and protected users' privacy.

    "And Zuckerberg said: 'I do not understand your question. Those who have nothing to hide, have nothing to fear.'

    "Again and again I had to think about this sentence. It's terrible. I know it is certainly not meant that way. This is a mindset that was fostered in totalitarian regimes not in liberal societies. Such a sentence could also be said by the head of the Stasi or other intelligence service or a dictatorship."

    your discomfort, sir, is because he really did mean it that way. this is the guy that called people "dumb fucks" for using a service he created and advertised as such:

    I'm a super nerdy Harvard peer and created this cool website. Give me your name, phone number, address, and interests so I can put it on there and other people can search for you.

    Sincerely,

    Mark Zuckerberg

    (source [cafemom.com])

  • (Score: 1) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 19 2014, @02:26AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 19 2014, @02:26AM (#33266)

    "The boss of one of Europe's largest media companies has strongly criticised Google in an open letter printed in a German newspaper."

    "his company is afraid of Google and its power."

    I am much more afraid of Axel Springer and his power and I am much more afraid of what he is saying against Google and what legislative and other influences it may have.

    "He also asks in the letter, addressed to Google boss Eric Schmidt, whether Google intends to create a superstate where anti-trust and privacy laws don't apply."

    and how does the anti-trust question apply less to Axel than to Google.

    Really, why should anyone take the opinion of someone with a business interest in seeing the demise of Google seriously? If there really is an anti-trust issue here and if the opinion of someone is useful to help us determine this then his opinion should be last on our list of people to help us make that determination. Why should his opinion, the opinion of a media competitor, matter here?

  • (Score: 3) by anubi on Saturday April 19 2014, @03:02AM

    by anubi (2828) on Saturday April 19 2014, @03:02AM (#33268) Journal

    If I have this right, often in Google searches, Google often serves up some Springer links, which offer a tiny tidbit of info with more promised behind a paywall. Then I follow more Google links and usually find the information I was looking for without having to buy the Springer info.

    I get the idea Springer is all to aware that its monopoly of trying to hold info behind a paywall is failing as Google provides links to other sources of the same info... for free. Kinda hard to compete with free, ya know.

    For some time, before Google, I used to buy Springer-owned information, and it was a crap-shoot whether I paid and got anything useful or not. I would be very hard-pressed to pay through any paywalls anymore. I think Springer knows their attempting to own information is failing and is resentful of Google's success in providing pointers to anyone sharing information that Springer had made a business model of selling.

    --
    "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]
  • (Score: 2) by Subsentient on Saturday April 19 2014, @06:17AM

    by Subsentient (1111) on Saturday April 19 2014, @06:17AM (#33293) Homepage Journal

    What?! Giving one company a free pass to be a monopoly is a bad idea? Hmm? It was worse to give them all our data as well? Now I don't believe that Google's immortality research and Google Glass sounds like the Borg at all!

    --
    "It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society." -Jiddu Krishnamurti