Perplexity has introduced a new subscription tier for its agentic AI browser Comet that includes a revenue-sharing model for publishers.
As part of the new programme, publishers will be able to earn money when their website’s link shows up in Comet’s AI-generated search results, when their site receives traffic from Comet, and when the browser’s AI agent uses the site’s content to complete tasks on behalf of the user.
Perplexity has set aside a $42.5 million fund for participating publishers, saying it will channel a share of the revenue earned from Comet Plus subscriptions into the pool based on a 80-20 split. It is similar to the approach taken by Apple for Apple News+.
Perplexity is one of the first major AI startups to set up a new revenue-sharing arrangement with publishers based on in-response citations and web traffic. Other companies such as Meta, Google, and OpenAI have sought to ink deals with major publishers like Reuters, Axel Springer, Vox Media, etc, to distribute their content as well as licence it for AI training purposes.
The move also comes as news publishers voice concerns that the rise of generative AI-powered search engines and AI agents will lead to a dramatic decline in site traffic and slash revenues.
“AI is helping to create a better internet, but publishers still need to get paid. So we think this is actually the right solution, and we’re happy to make adjustments along the way,” Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas was quoted as saying by Bloomberg.
Media outlets relying on web traffic and clicks is an old model, and we just want to create a new standard for compensation, Jessica Chan, head of publisher partnerships at Perplexity, said in an interview.
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What is Comet Plus?
Perplexity’s agentic AI browser Comet is currently available to all Pro subscribers in the US. “We’ll start expanding access every week going forward to make Comet generally available to all Perplexity Pro users,” Srinivas said at the time.
Comet Plus is a $5 monthly subscription that provides users access to a curated selection of content from the publishers in Perplexity’s new programme. It is unclear which news publishers are currently part of the programme. The Jeff Bezos-backed AI startup has previously inked deals with outlets like Time, the Los Angeles Times, and Fortune for sharing ad revenue.
On the other hand, Perplexity is facing lawsuits filed by media outlets such as Forbes and Condé Nast over the alleged use of their work in AI news summaries without permission. It has also been accused of copyright infringement by News Corp.’s Dow Jones and the New York Post.
“We are confident AI companies will win all of these lawsuits. We look forward to settling the law on this early on, so that everyone can benefit from AI,” Perplexity spokesperson Jesse Dwyer was quoted as saying.
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Perplexity, whose AI search engine is looking to take on Google Search, raised $100 million at a $18 billion valuation last month.