Google has announced plans to establish a €60 million (roughly $82 million USD) Digital Publishing Innovation Fund that it says will help French media sites "make the most of the web." In a Google Blog post from Eric Schmidt, the chairman spins the large investment in a positive light, insisting his company plans to help spur an increase in AdSense revenue for news publishers — who have taken issue with Google displaying their headlines and snippets of stories in search results. Today's arrangement, which Schmidt also announced publicly with President Hollande of France, brings an end to the high-profile rift.

At the height of the disagreement, French officials were considering levying Google with a tax if it continued republishing news content. Google threatened to boycott France's media sites entirely if such a law came to pass. Thankfully, following a visit from Mr. Schmidt himself, it seems cooler heads have prevailed — no doubt helped by Google's sizable financial commitment — and search results in the country won't be affected.