Empty threats

So Google is having a bit of a fit about a proposed Australian law that would force it to pay journalists for content that it uses to attract people to its website and 'threatens' to disable search in Australia if the law is enacted. Here's a news flash, Google is not the only search engine on the market so good luck with that one lads.

In spite of what some of these companies think, none of them are monopolies and all of them have competition in some form or another. Their only advantage at this stage is that they were first to market with a service that people wanted... no-one is forced to use them, they have no 'right' to your loyalty and you can pick and choose whoever suits your needs at any given time.

One of the claims Google makes is that it is 'unworkable' and 'would "break" Google's business model'. Excuse me? It's a business model, not a natural law. Sending small children up chimneys in Victorian England was a business model once. They come and go according to the morals of the time. As to 'unworkable' if we can design a self driving car or an AI algorithm then we can design pretty much anything. 'Unworkable' from a tech perspective just means 'can't be bothered'.

These are empty threats and only hurt the organisation making them. Save your breath and deal with it like every other business faced with a problem.