Rupert Murdoch's war on Google

Will Murdoch really block Google from linking to The Wall Street Journal — or is he just telling strategic lies?

Rupert Murdoch thinks Google and other search engines are thieves and “plagiarists,” and he’s threatening to prevent them from linking to all his newspapers including The Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, and The Times of London. Paired with his plan to charge for all content by next June, Murdoch's argument is that, even though the WSJ website could lose 25 percent of its traffic, it’s better to have fewer readers who pay. Is he onto something? (Watch Rupert Murdoch's comments about Google)

Murdoch doesn’t need Google: Here’s a “little enlightenment for all of you who think Murdoch is making a mistake,” says Mark Cuban in Blog Maverick. This isn’t 2008, and the future isn't about searching for news; it's about having news delivered via Twitter or Facebook, which pose no threat to Murdoch because “140 characters does not a story make.” Rupert is right this time. "Deal with it.”

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