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I recently spoke with David Eun, vice president of content partnerships at Google Inc., at the company's office in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood. The 41-year-old, who heads business development and execution of deals with Google's network of video, print and local content providers, had lots to say on such matters as the Internet search giant's position on copyrights and on how media companies can make better use of the Web. Read the full interview, which will appear in the March 3 edition of The Deal, here. Excerpts below, and tune in on Tuesday for the first of Mary Kathleen Flynn's two-part video interview with Eun. - Alain SherterSome critics contend that industry consolidation in the Internet business, coupled with technological consolidation, gives too much control to certain companies and particularly to Google. Is that a concern for you?
We're conscious of these concerns from the standpoint of being very
genuine about making an environment where startups and innovation can
thrive on the Web. The company is less than 10 years old, and part of
our history is literally working out of a garage. Whether it's in
social networking or mobile or with YouTube, we've always tried to
maintain an open, collaborative approach to things, with a focus on
giving users as much choice as possible.
When it comes to ownership rights on the Internet, what is the proper balance of power among content creators, distributors and consumers?
Without question, a content owner is the rightful controller of the copyright. That's never been a question at Google. What we're trying to do is introduce possibilities for content owners to do something besides take content out of the hands of users.
What sort of content deals are you lining up to support Google's push into mobile services?Our mission is to connect people to information anywhere, anytime, on any device, so for us mobile is a huge opportunity. We've established lots of deals to provide a great mobile experience around our data. Google Earth, for instance, is an experience you can have on everything from your BlackBerry to your handset.
Media companies in particular are struggling over whether to charge for material on the Internet or offer it for free. What trends do you see in this area?Whether you have a pay model at a particular destination or whether you have something ad-supported, we think it's a missed opportunity if you don't sprinkle your content out there and try to engage with people. We have some partners that have made very bold steps, such as The New York Times, which went from a pay model to a free model.
