Perplexity launches Comet Plus, offering a new revenue stream for publishers

Perplexity, an AI search company, is introducing a new subscription model called Comet Plus aimed at creating a new economic framework for publishers in the AI age. This initiative, launched alongside its AI-powered Comet browser, attempts to address the growing tension between AI platforms and content creators. The model is designed to compensate publishers for three types of user interactions: human visits, search citations, and agent actions.

The digital publishing industry has long relied on a business model based on ad revenue from human traffic and clicks. The rise of generative AI has disrupted this model, as AI-powered search tools often summarise content and provide answers directly, reducing the need for users to visit a publisher's website. This shift has led to revenue losses for media outlets and has resulted in multiple lawsuits against AI companies, including Perplexity.

A New Framework for Compensation

Perplexity's Comet Plus aims to fix this. It is a standalone USD 5 per month subscription, also included with Perplexity's Pro and Max memberships. The company has committed an initial pool of USD 42.5 million to be distributed among participating publishers. Under this model, Perplexity will distribute 80% of the revenue from Comet Plus subscriptions to publishers, with the remaining 20% covering compute costs.

Jessica Chan, Perplexity's Head of Publisher Partnerships, states that the traditional model of relying on clicks is "an old model." She says the company wants to create a new standard for compensation. This new model is significant because it pays publishers not just for direct website visits, but also when their content is cited in an AI-generated answer or when an AI agent uses their content to complete a task. This broader approach to compensation acknowledges the different ways people consume information in an AI-driven environment.

For example, when a user asks Perplexity to summarise recent news about a specific industry, and the answer cites a publisher's article, that publisher gets paid. Similarly, if the Comet Assistant is used to find and organise information for a user's meeting, and it pulls data from a partner's website, that action also generates revenue for the publisher.

While the new model has a clear framework, some in the industry remain cautious. The effectiveness of the program will depend on user adoption of Comet Plus and the transparency of Perplexity's reporting. The company has not yet released a full list of its initial publishing partners, but has previously worked with outlets such as TIME, Der Spiegel, and The Los Angeles Times on its ad revenue-sharing program.