Microsoft Yearns US To Charge Google, Facebook For Content Usage: WSJ

Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ: MSFT) President Brad Smith commended the U.S. to start charging tech companies like Alphabet Inc’s (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL), Google, and Facebook Inc (NASDAQ: FB) for content usage akin to Australia and U.K., the Wall Street Journal reports.
Microsoft’s search engine Bing has a minuscule share compared to Google’s market-leading position.
Previously, Microsoft has pleaded with the government to regulate facial-recognition technology better, bringing itself to a feud with tech veterans. Last year, it supported a videogame developer against Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) regarding an argument concerning app-store fees.
Recently, Google launched its paid News Showcase Platform in the U.K. within a week of rolling out the same in Australia to bypass their content law.
Both Google and Facebook have faced flak from media companies for free usage of the content.
Price action: FB shares are down 0.10% at $270.13 in the pre-market session on the last check Friday. MSFT shares are down 0.29% at $243.78.