AI Data Deal TrackerDeal brief
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Microsoft begins paying Reuters, Axel Springer, Hearst, USA Today Network and the FT for Copilot Daily
Microsoft said it will pay publishers whose content appears in Copilot Daily, a spoken news briefing. Five publishers signed on at launch, and Microsoft did not disclose payments or terms.
REDMOND, Wash., October 1, 2024 - Microsoft announced that it will pay publishers for content that appears in Copilot Daily, a new feature of its Copilot assistant that gives users a spoken summary of the weather and current events. Reuters, Axel Springer, Hearst Magazines, USA Today Network and The Financial Times signed on at launch. Microsoft did not disclose payments or other terms.1
Terms of the deal
TechCrunch reported that Copilot Daily was announced alongside other Copilot upgrades and is available in the US and UK at launch. Microsoft said in a blog post that it will only pull from authorized content sources. The company said it plans to add publishers and expand the feature to new countries soon, but it would not reveal how much it is paying or the other terms of the arrangements.1
None of the five publishers responded to TechCrunch's request for comment at publication.1
Background
TechCrunch noted that Microsoft has compensated publishers for many years through content-licensing deals for its MSN platform, but that those deals had not covered AI products until Copilot Daily.1 The partnerships arrived while Microsoft was a defendant in a lawsuit by The New York Times alleging use of millions of Times articles to train chatbots, and while OpenAI, Perplexity and Apple were also making payment deals partly to shield against infringement claims, the report said.1 In late 2025, Microsoft built on this with a pay-per-use Publisher Content Marketplace, with Gannett among the participants.2
What it means for data sellers
The Copilot Daily deal shows that existing licenses may not cover AI. Microsoft had been paying publishers for MSN for years, yet needed new agreements before using the same publishers' content in an AI product. A seller with older content licenses should check whether their grants mention AI, machine learning or new technologies.
It also shows that a narrow use can be the first step. A single feature, with a handful of named partners, led to a larger program a year later. Sellers should treat a small first deal as a test, and ask for clear renewal and expansion terms.
This entry is a news summary. SellYourAIData was not involved in the deal.
How the deal came together
- Microsoft launched Copilot Daily. On October 1, 2024 Microsoft announced the feature with other Copilot upgrades.
- Only authorized sources are used. Microsoft said Copilot Daily pulls only from authorized content sources.
- Five publishers signed on. Reuters, Axel Springer, Hearst Magazines, USA Today Network and the Financial Times were named.
- Terms were not revealed. Microsoft would not say how much it pays.
Takeaways for companies with data
- Microsoft's older MSN licensing deals did not cover AI, so this was a new, separate set of rights.
- A narrow product, a daily audio brief, can anchor a paid deal.
- Microsoft said it would add publishers over time, which opened the door for later marketplace deals.
Sources
Every numbered reference above points to an entry here. Figures come from these pages as of the date shown at the top of the article. Where a source reports a number it got from unnamed people, the text says so.
- Microsoft starts paying publishers for content surfaced by Copilot (TechCrunch, October 2024)
- Gannett reports third quarter results, announces Microsoft AI licensing deal (PPC Land, November 2025)
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About the AI Data Deal Tracker
SellYourAIData tracks publicly reported sales and licenses of data to AI companies, with the price, terms and sources for each. Entries are checked against public reporting and updated as deals change. SellYourAIData was not involved in this deal. To ask what your company's data could sell for, get a free valuation. To report a deal, contact us.