September 22, 2006 Comments
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For the "okaaaaaaaaaaaaaay then" files... CNet News reports that a Paris, France based organization known as the World Association of Newspapers has budgeted some half a million dollars in order to examine ways to "protect" their online content from being indexed and "re-published" by Google. Apparently the group of publishers is upset that Google is pulling snippets of their articles and using them to link to the full story, similar to the AFP lawsuit last year. With that in mind, the WAN has decided to hire out consultants to create something they've dubbed "Automated Content Access Protocol." But let's think about this a bit further...
The CNet Article explains what this "Automated Content Access Protocol" is designed to do...
"Since search engine operators rely on robotic 'spiders' to manage their automated processes, publishers' Web sites need to start speaking a language which the operators can teach their robots to understand," according to a document seen by Reuters that outlines the publishers' plans.
"What is required is a standardized way of describing the permissions which apply to a Web site or Web page so that it can be decoded by a dumb machine without the help of an expensive lawyer."
Say what now? Umm...do you think if I called them up and told them that there's a nifty little tool called "robots.txt" file that they'd send that half a million my way? What if I added in the fact that it's pretty darn easy to "opt out" of Google's News index?
Do you think anyone's told them?
Jennifer Laycock is the Editor of Search Engine Guide, an educational web site aimed at translating the search marketing world into something that small business owners can understand. Jennifer specializes in common sense search engine marketing, viral marketing and customer outreach via social media and blogs. A former search marketing consultant and in-house trainer, Jennifer’s clients have included companies like Verizon, American Greetings and Highlights for Children. Her primary clients now are a little girl named Elnora and a little boy named Emmitt.
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