AMP: 1st phase of control over monetization and management of copyrighted content
When we see how search engines and AI systems are transforming content into click-free answers today, it seems like something new. But the truth is that the process began years ago—with a project that was presented as “accelerating the web,” but in reality became the first phase of taking control away from copyrighted content.
That project was AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages).
1. AMP as “voluntary coercion”
Google presented AMP as a solution for a faster mobile web. But publishers quickly realized that Google’s snapshot, or AMP, was not voluntary.
If you didn’t have an AMP version, you lost:
- visibility in Top Stories
- advantage in mobile results
- clickability in SERP
- part of organic traffic
It wasn’t a choice. It was soft coercion that pushed publishers into a system they didn’t control.
2. AMP diverted traffic away from authors
When a user clicked on an AMP result, they saw Google’s snapshot, so to speak, and did not land on the author’s domain or blog. They landed on:
google.com/amp/…
This means:
- Google became an intermediary layer between the author and the reader
- analytics were compromised
- the user did not see the actual page, but Google’s frame
- the author lost contact with their audience
This was the first step towards: “the content is yours, but the visitor is ours.”
3. AMP limited monetization and gave preference to Google ads
AMP restricted:
- third-party scripts
- custom advertising solutions
- advanced monetization formats
And gave preference to:
- Google Ads
- Google Ad Manager
- Google AMP Ads
In other words:
AMP was the first system where Google controlled both content display and ad display.
4. AMP as a testing ground for content extraction
AMP enabled Google to do something that was not possible before:
- structured access to content
- standardized components
- unified layouts
- easier machine learning over content
It was the ideal testing ground for:
- featured snippets
- zero-click answers
- AI summaries
- AI overviews
AMP was the first step toward Google no longer needing a click to use your content.
5. Publishers protested — but gave in anyway
Publishers warned:
- that they were losing traffic
- that they were losing revenue
- that they were losing control
But because Google controlled the traffic, in the end:
- grumbled
- complained
- and still accepted AMP
This sent a clear signal to Google: “If we take away some of their control, they will protest. If we take away their traffic, they will give in.”
6. AMP paved the way for today’s AI practices
When we see today:
- AI responses in SERP
- zero-click search results
- AI overviews
- summaries without sources…
… it’s clear that AMP was the first phase of the same strategy.
First, they took the display.
Then they took the click.
Now they’re taking the content.
7. Conclusion: AMP was the beginning of the removal of authorship
Looking back, AMP became:
- the first removal of traffic
- the first removal of monetization
- the first removal of control over content display
- the first test of how far Google could reach into the author’s space
AMP was not just a project for speed.
It was the beginning of an evolution that led to today’s SERP, where the platform uses foreign content as fuel — without sharing value with authors.
