According to TechCrunch, People Inc has signed an AI licensing deal with Microsoft, making it a launch partner in Microsoft’s new publisher content marketplace. This comes as the publisher revealed shocking data showing Google Search traffic dropped from 54% of its total two years ago to just 24% last quarter, largely due to Google’s AI Overviews. CEO Neil Vogel described the Microsoft marketplace as a “pay-per-use” model where AI players directly compensate publishers, with Microsoft’s Copilot being the first buyer. The deal follows People Inc’s earlier agreement with OpenAI last year, which Vogel characterized as more of an “all-you-can-eat” model. Meanwhile, parent company IAC reported People Inc grew digital revenue 9% to $269 million last quarter, with licensing revenue up 24%.
The publisher fightback is working
Here’s the thing: People Inc is showing other publishers exactly how to play hardball with AI companies. They’re not just complaining about content scraping – they’re actively blocking AI crawlers using Cloudflare’s technology and forcing these tech giants to come to the negotiating table. Vogel said this approach has been “very effective” and “brought almost everyone to the table.” And it’s paying off literally – with licensing revenue jumping 24% last quarter.
That Google traffic crash is terrifying
Let’s talk about that traffic drop for a second. Going from 54% to 24% of your traffic from Google in just two years? That’s not a decline – that’s a cliff dive. And it’s happening right as Google rolls out AI Overviews that basically answer questions without sending people to publisher websites. No wonder Vogel called Google a “bad actor” – they’re using the same bot for search and AI features, leaving publishers with no way to block AI scraping without killing their remaining search traffic. It’s a brutal position to be in.
Two deals, two very different models
What’s interesting is how People Inc is playing the field with different deal structures. Their OpenAI partnership was more of a buffet-style arrangement, while Microsoft is going a la carte with pay-per-use. Vogel says they’re happy with either approach as long as the content gets “respected and paid for.” Basically, they’re becoming agnostic about the business model – the important part is getting paid rather than getting scraped.
Where this is all heading
I think we’re seeing the beginning of a massive shift in how publishers survive in the AI era. The old model of relying on search traffic is clearly breaking down, and smart publishers like People Inc are diversifying into performance marketing, acquisitions like Feedfeed, and now AI licensing deals. The question is: will smaller publishers have the same leverage when they come to the table? Probably not – which means we might see more industry consolidation as AI companies prefer dealing with larger content aggregators. But for now, People Inc is writing the playbook for how to make AI work for publishers instead of against them.
