Google LLC struck a three-year partnership with British publisher Archant Ltd. to develop sustainable digital business models for local news.
The Project Neon initiative will help local publishers deal with commercial challenges by creating all-digital news platforms in up to three U.K. communities, Archant Chief Content Officer Matt Kelly said in a blog post.
Archant will fully own and operate the new businesses to be created under the initiative, with Google providing funding and expert support under the Google News Initiative's Local Experiments Project.
The Alphabet Inc. unit will invest "several million dollars" in the venture, London's Financial Times reported.
The tech giant launched the Google News Initiative in 2018 to "elevate and strengthen quality journalism." It recently teamed up with McClatchy Co. for The Compass Experiment, a U.S. digital news outlet program.
