Do you have paid content?
Posted: Sat Feb 01, 2025 10:39 am
Users prefer a low-threshold way to access news content without having to register or subscribe. If websites require a subscription or registration, Google News offers three ways to index them:
First click is free
For press services that require a subscription, there is the option that the first article that a Google News user accesses via a link is free. Further clicks lead to the usual registration or subscription request. The advantage: even providers that charge for a fee receive more traffic and can achieve more subscriptions. A user who accesses Google News from the domain [*.google.*] must be allowed to read at least three articles per day ; an article counter limits access. Otherwise, the target website is classified as a subscription website.
Use snippets
If "First click free" is not an option, Google News displays the label "Subscription" next to the publication name. Users see a subscription or registration form. In this case, as a provider, provide a snippet of the article with at least 80 words. It is currently sufficient if this is available to Googlebot and not yet to Googlebot News. This excerpt or summary will then be uae mobile numbers list displayed. Under no circumstances should you provide Googlebot with a complete version of the article while the user is only directed to a version of the news site that requires a subscription and registration. This "cloaking" can result in penalties for the website via the Google Search Console.
Adjust robots.txt and sitemaps
If the website has subscription content, this can also be blocked for search robots using the robots.txt file. It is also possible to only have one sitemap crawled and to differentiate between free, registered and subscription access types. Changes should be reported to Google News. The website will then be updated in the system.
Have you considered everything and followed all the guidelines? Then you can request to have your website included via the Google News Publisher Center.
First click is free
For press services that require a subscription, there is the option that the first article that a Google News user accesses via a link is free. Further clicks lead to the usual registration or subscription request. The advantage: even providers that charge for a fee receive more traffic and can achieve more subscriptions. A user who accesses Google News from the domain [*.google.*] must be allowed to read at least three articles per day ; an article counter limits access. Otherwise, the target website is classified as a subscription website.
Use snippets
If "First click free" is not an option, Google News displays the label "Subscription" next to the publication name. Users see a subscription or registration form. In this case, as a provider, provide a snippet of the article with at least 80 words. It is currently sufficient if this is available to Googlebot and not yet to Googlebot News. This excerpt or summary will then be uae mobile numbers list displayed. Under no circumstances should you provide Googlebot with a complete version of the article while the user is only directed to a version of the news site that requires a subscription and registration. This "cloaking" can result in penalties for the website via the Google Search Console.
Adjust robots.txt and sitemaps
If the website has subscription content, this can also be blocked for search robots using the robots.txt file. It is also possible to only have one sitemap crawled and to differentiate between free, registered and subscription access types. Changes should be reported to Google News. The website will then be updated in the system.
Have you considered everything and followed all the guidelines? Then you can request to have your website included via the Google News Publisher Center.