CNN, the Financial Times and Axios have joined Google’s news programme. They will provide their content for generative AI features and receive payment for its use. Bloomberg reported on Oct. 15 that the programme now has more than 400 participating outlets worldwide.

Google began the programme last year as a pilot with partners including The Washington Post. Participating publishers grant Google expanded rights to use their content, and Google develops new AI features based on it. The contract terms were not disclosed. Google said the new AI features will include source attribution and direct links so readers can move to the original source.

The deal is CNN’s first partnership since Paramount Skydance acquired Warner Bros. Discovery. Chief executive David Ellison is reshaping the combined company into a technology-focused media company.

Sam Felix (샘 펠릭스), CNN’s senior vice president for strategic partnerships and business development, said Google’s generative AI had changed how users search for information. He said the tool would help find readers in new ways and increase engagement.

News organisations are stepping up legal action against AI companies using their content to train large language models without permission. Search traffic flowing to news outlets is also declining as search engines foreground AI-generated answers.

CNN said the deal aligns with its intellectual property protection strategy. CNN has several commercial partnerships and is continuing discussions with other industry participants.

The deal is meaningful in that it structured usage rights and compensation in exchange for using publishers’ content in AI features. It is also seen as a case testing how to secure traffic to original sources in an AI search environment by putting attribution and direct links front and centre.