---
title: "Microsoft: what they buy and what they pay"
url: https://www.brightinfo.com/buyers/microsoft/
site: https://www.brightinfo.com/
description: "What Microsoft buys, what it pays and its deal terms, from public sources with a link for every fact. Last verified November 3, 2026."
last_updated: 2026-11-03
---

# Microsoft: what they buy and what they pay

Buyers › AI labs › Microsoft

Microsoft is profiled here as an AI lab [1]. Data types cited in this profile include: Publisher content [2].

Last verified November 3, 2026

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Type | AI lab [1] |
| Status | Active [2] |
| Website | https://www.microsoft.com/ [3] |
| HQ | One Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA 98052-7329, USA [3] |
| Founded | 1975 [3] |
| Ownership | Not published |
| Program | Publisher Content Marketplace (PCM) [2] · https://about.ads.microsoft.com/en/blog/post/february-2026/building-toward-a-sustainable-content-economy-for-the-agentic-web [2] |
| Price | $5,000 per nonfiction title, split evenly between author and HarperCollins (reported) [1] |
| Pricing basis | Publishers to be paid on delivered value (PCM) [2] · Per-title fee (HarperCollins, reported) [1] |
| Payment timing | Not published |
| How to start | "Click here" link in the PCM announcement for those interested in learning more [2] |

## What they buy

- **Data types:** Publisher content [2] · Books (nonfiction backlist) (reported) [1]
- **Excluded:** Fiction excluded (HarperCollins deal covers select previously published nonfiction only) (reported) [1]
- **Intended use:** Grounding AI responses (PCM) [2] · Training an unnamed Microsoft AI model (HarperCollins) (reported) [1]

## Price and payment

- **Price:** $5,000 per nonfiction title, split evenly between author and HarperCollins (reported) [1]
- **Pricing basis:** Publishers to be paid on delivered value (PCM) [2] · Per-title fee (HarperCollins, reported) [1]
- **Payment timing:** Not published
- **Seller fees:** Not published
- **Platform's cut:** Not published
- **Referral bounty:** Not published

## Deal terms

- **Deal structure:** Publisher-defined license terms; voluntary participation (PCM) [2]
- **Exclusivity:** Not published
- **Term:** Three years (HarperCollins) (reported) [1]
- **Field of use:** Outputs limited to no more than 200 consecutive words and/or 5% of a book's text; licensee pledges not to scrape piracy sites (HarperCollins) (reported) [4]
- **Onward transfer:** Not published
- **Seller keeps ownership:** Yes: publishers retain ownership and editorial independence (PCM) [2]

## Process

- **Steps:** Not published
- **Timeline:** Not published
- **Sample before offer:** Not published
- **How to start:** "Click here" link in the PCM announcement for those interested in learning more [2]

## Who they sell to

- **Sells to:** Microsoft Copilot (announced as the first buyer, Nov 2025) [5] · Yahoo (demand partner; onboarding began Feb 2026) [2]

## Track record

### Named deals

- HarperCollins: three-year deal to train an as-yet-unnamed Microsoft AI model on its catalog (reported) [1]
- People Inc. joined the pay-per-use marketplace (Nov 2025) [5]
- PCM co-design partners: AP, Business Insider, Condé Nast, Hearst Magazines, People Inc, USA TODAY Co., Vox Media [2]

### Coverage

- Digiday on People Inc.'s Microsoft marketplace deal [5]
- Authors Guild on the HarperCollins license terms [4]

## Watch for

- The New York Times sued Microsoft and OpenAI for copyright infringement (2023) [6]

## Sources

1. HarperCollins Book Catalog To Train Microsoft AI Models For The Next 3 Years | eWeek, eweek.com. Published December 7, 2024. Accessed October 30 and November 3, 2026. (press) https://www.eweek.com/news/harpercollins-books-train-microsoft-ai-models/
2. Building Toward a Sustainable Content Economy for the Agentic Web | Microsoft Advertising, about.ads.microsoft.com. Published February 3, 2026. Accessed October 30 and November 3, 2026. (company's own site) https://about.ads.microsoft.com/en/blog/post/february-2026/building-toward-a-sustainable-content-economy-for-the-agentic-web
3. Facts About Microsoft, news.microsoft.com. Accessed October 30, 2026. (company's own site) https://news.microsoft.com/facts-about-microsoft/
4. HarperCollins AI licensing deal - The Authors Guild, authorsguild.org. Published November 19, 2024. Accessed October 30, 2026. (press) https://authorsguild.org/news/harpercollins-ai-licensing-deal/
5. People Inc. strikes Microsoft AI licensing deal as Google’s AI Overviews hit programmatic ad revenue - Digiday, digiday.com. Published November 4, 2025. Accessed October 30 and November 3, 2026. (press) https://digiday.com/media/people-inc-strikes-microsoft-ai-licensing-deal-as-googles-ai-overviews-hit-programmatic-ad-revenue/
6. New York Times partners with Amazon for first AI licensing deal (Reuters via Hawaii Tribune-Herald), hawaiitribune-herald.com. Published May 30, 2025. Accessed October 30, 2026. (press) https://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/2025/05/30/nation-world-news/new-york-times-partners-with-amazon-for-first-ai-licensing-deal/

Last verified November 3, 2026

**Disclosure.** Bright Info is a sell-side broker. We may invite Microsoft to bid for a client's data. This profile is compiled from public sources; it is not endorsed by or affiliated with Microsoft. Corrections: hello@brightinfo.com.

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