Has anyone reported how Google Scholar works to Rupert Murdoch? He’s going to blow up when he knows about it.
In this article, we are going to discuss how Google Scholar and Google’s main web search works regarding the paywall content? What should Rupert Murdoch do if he wants Google or Google Scholar to index its paywall content?
Let’s get started
Let’s think about if Google put forward a deal like this to news publishers (as you’ll have figured it out, that’s how Google Scholar operates)
- Google will index the content and make it appear in the search results even when the whole of the content is not visible. Due to the paywall, the full content is not shown when a user clicks that result because the visitor cannot have access without subscribing to it.
- Google will find out and pop up that story from an authoritative source. So, newspaper breaking any exclusive news gets more preference over the bloggers, etc.
- Google won’t make a difference to results anyway. Users think they can access the content shown in the search engine results. But, when they open it, they face the problem of the paywall.
As I mentioned, that’s exactly how Google Scholar functions, but it’s not something Google put forward to newspapers.
How Google Scholar Works?
I am sure we all have heard of Google Scholar and how it shows the results of snippets of the text when you type something. Let’s suppose you want to search about ‘coronavirus’ then you will see the results related to it. But just when you click a result you will notice that you won’t have access to the content.
In other words, content is hidden behind a paywall. The results that showed in the metadata are not anywhere. That’s how it works. It indexes the content and shows it in the search results even when the result is not visible behind paywall.
Ironically Google says that sites must follow the rules of giving access to the content. But it feels like you can escape it with a few sentences regarding which issue it was in.
How Google Scholar Varies From The Normal Search Results
This type of assemblage is not a proposition to new companies.
How Results Show In Google News
Google News can show the results of paywall news. They can either show in the first click free.
In that case, they should allow free access to the content for the users coming through Google News. It means they should also be able to see the content hidden through the paywall, as Google mentions.
If they do not want to provide access to content without a subscription, the results should look like this.
That’s how subscription sites appear in Google News
Pressing through, you’ll receive a message like this that says:
This content is visible to site subscribers only.
How Results Show In Google Web Results
Google web allows the first click free to the site publishers. They can install paywalls, but Google only indexes their content if it allows the searchers to see the full content when they click the link.
However, the second choice given above is not accessible for Google’s normal web search.
Google has been very straightforward about that. If the sites want to be in Google’s main web search, they need to adhere to the guideline. Google does not allow to show in the search engine one thing and for visitors the other. So if you want Google to index the pages, you need to let the users see the content when they click through.
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So, Where Does The Difference Lies Between The Both?
The difference between both is that Google’s normal web results will index if the site follows the first rule. This means Google will show the paywall content given it shows the user the full content if they visit through Google.
However, that’s not the case with Google Scholar.
Google Scholar will still index the content even if it does not adhere to the first rule. The site results will appear in the search engine even if they are paywall and do not let users access the content. If you click the results, it will not let you go through the hidden content.
Above all, Google tries to bring the main and the most authoritative version of work for content in Google Scholar.
Here’s How It Would Benefit Rupert Murdoch
If Rupert Murdoch wants to cover the content of the Sunday Times or the Sun behind a paywall, they can do it. But they need to join the first click free. They need to permit the users to read all the content when they visit their results.
However, the rules are entirely different if he considers the Sun as Wapping News Journal and Google Scholar to show its results, then the rules. He can still make Google index his content and does not give permission to its content unless users pay for the subscription. In addition, Google will prefer its content if the original content source comes under it.
The Bottom Line
Google Scholar indexes the paywall content but does not allow the users to see the whole content if you have not paid for a subscription. Google News and Web Results allow the site to make Google index the site by joining the first click free.
However, they have to make sure the paywall content is fully visible to the users. We hope this article has helped the users in knowing Google’s policy regarding paywall content.It can help Rupert Murdoch decide which option to choose when he knows how the Google index works differently for both sites.
