At first I thought this was about Google image search and artists having problems with that but I don't really understand why this is newsworthy. Google called asked and got turned down, seems perfectly reasonable and unobtrusive to me. Now I'm not an artist but if Google called me and asked to feature something I've coded I'd be absolutely thrilled if I was (well I am) an unknown struggling coder.
And quite right too - if artists have to keep give their artwork away for free to get exposure (which is what they're usually told is the main benefit of giving their work away for free), who's ever going to pay them?
And along the same line, if Google can't afford to pay them, then who can?
Or you can put it otherwise: If Google can't afford to ask artists to do something for free, then who can? (Meaning that there will always be enough 'good enough' fan bois that they don't need the high profile artists.)
Google can afford to pay for them. That's the reason the artists are pissed.
It's like a millionaire asking a homeless bum for change, claiming that the "exposure" of being a nice guy will earn the bum a few more donations.
> Google can afford to pay for them. That's the reason the artists are pissed.