Media Briefing: From blocking to licensing, publishers inch toward leverage with AI

This week’s Media Briefing looks at the catch-22 publishers face when deciding whether or not to block AI crawlers, especially as they seek more leverage in negotiations with AI marketplaces and platforms as more and more players move into this space.

• Publishers are still far from holding the upper hand when it comes to controlling and monetizing AI crawlers, but the outlook no longer looks quite so bleak.
• Perplexity announces new publisher participants in AI subscription revenue share program, The Root returns to Black ownership, and more.

It’s become publishers’ eternal dilemma in the AI era: to block or not to block — weighing the need to protect content against the lure of potential licensing and visibility deals. 

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