[lmm]

> Google does not advertise anywhere that their list is free content only.

Google does advertise that they index based on the same content that's available to anyone viewing the page, and has policies against presenting a different version of the page to their crawler versus what you're showing to visitors.

[carlosjobim]

It's splitting hairs at this point, but anyone visiting the page can view the same content as the crawler – if they pay.

Should Google also stop indexing Facebook, since Facebook puts a login wall for people to access their content? Should YouTube (ie Google) ban movie trailers, since it's just a tease for paywalled movies? The iTunes store let people listen to 30 seconds of a song before purchasing at the paywall. Was that wrong?

[lmm]

> Should Google also stop indexing Facebook, since Facebook puts a login wall for people to access their content?

Yes - I thought they already did? (I know LinkedIn edges around this by putting up a login wall only if you have a cookie showing that you'd logged in previously).

> Should YouTube (ie Google) ban movie trailers, since it's just a tease for paywalled movies? The iTunes store let people listen to 30 seconds of a song before purchasing at the paywall. Was that wrong?

A free sample of a paid thing is fine if everyone knows that's what it is. It's when you bait-and-switch by offering something that seems like it's free to start with that it's a problem. Like imagine showing a movie in the town square and then 10 minutes in you pause it and tell everyone they need to buy a ticket or leave.

[carlosjobim]

> Yes - I thought they already did?

Just checked, Google still indexes Facebook and puts relevant results on top. If you're not logged in you can't continue.