Tech giants court media execs
In her new role at Microsoft, Beizer will lead its AI news product across Microsoft platforms, according to the person.
In 2024, Microsoft launched Copilot Daily, an audio summarization of news and weather sourced from publishers like Reuters, Axel Springer, and the Financial Times. In September, the company launched its Publisher Content Marketplace (PMC), which aimed to make Microsoft the first major technology company to build an AI marketplace for publishers.
The company has invited select publishers, including Condé Nast, to participate in the two-sided marketplace, which would pay outlets for use of their data to power Copilot. The PMC suggests that Microsoft is looking to deepen its relationship with publishers as it restructures its relationship with OpenAI, in which Microsoft is the largest minority investor.
Technology companies have a long history of hiring former media leaders to spearhead programs meant to work collaboratively with news publishers. In 2010, Google hired Madhav Chinnappa, formerly the director of media strategy at the BBC, to lead its news partnership efforts in Europe. And Meta hired former reporter Campbell Brown in 2017 to lead its global media partnership initiative.
Publishers have been clamoring for a system through which they could be compensated by AI firms for use of their data, but progress on that front has so far been limited. Pay-per-crawl trials and one-off licensing arrangements have so far yielded paltry commercial results, and they have disproportionately favored premium publishers over smaller content creators.
While nascent, Microsoft has been hailed for its willingness to explore potential marketplace solutions. As a key figure in its AI news efforts, Beizer will no doubt look to further build out those initiatives.
