Perplexity Launches Comet Plus to Support Journalism
Perplexity AI has unveiled Comet Plus, a pioneering subscription service designed to address the mounting tensions between AI companies and news publishers.
With a $42.5 million fund allocated for participating publishers, the initiative represents one of the first major attempts by an AI company to create a sustainable revenue-sharing model for journalism.
What is Comet Plus?
Comet Plus is a $5 monthly subscription service that provides users with curated access to premium content from participating publishers and journalists.
The service is automatically included at no additional cost for existing Perplexity Pro and Max subscribers, making it immediately available to the company’s premium user base
Key Highlights
Three-Tier Compensation Structure: Comet Plus introduces an unprecedented compensation framework based on three distinct types of internet traffic:
Human Traffic: Traditional visits where users directly access publisher websites through Comet browser, representing conventional readership patterns.
Indexed Traffic: When users ask Perplexity to synthesize information from multiple sources, and publisher content is cited in AI-generated responses.
Agent Traffic: When Comet’s AI assistant uses publisher content to complete tasks for users, such as scanning calendars and suggesting relevant articles for upcoming meetings.
Revenue Distribution & Funding: Perplexity commits to distributing 80% of subscription revenue to publishers, allocating 20% to cover compute and operational costs. The initiative is backed by an initial $42.5 million revenue pool.
Incentive Structure for Users: Comet Plus grants subscribers direct access to premium content from trusted publishers, empowering AI agents to deliver enriched answers informed by high-quality journalism.
Response to Publisher Concerns: The initiative arrives amid mounting criticism of AI’s negative impact on publisher revenue and ongoing copyright disputes.
Comet Plus represents a strategic shift toward building a more sustainable, fair AI-publisher relationship.
Key Features and Capabilities
Premium Content Access: Subscribers gain direct access to curated content from participating publishers, avoiding the typical friction of paywalls and subscription barriers across multiple news organizations.
This creates a unified premium news experience while ensuring publishers maintain revenue streams from their premium content.
Enhanced AI Integration: The service allows Perplexity’s AI assistant to provide richer insights and more comprehensive answers by drawing from high-quality, verified journalism sources.
This addresses user frustration with “low-quality clickbait, high-friction experiences, and endless blue links” that characterize much of the current internet experience.
Quality Content Curation: By partnering with established publishers, Comet Plus aims to combat misinformation and provide users with answers grounded in verified, high-quality journalism.
This curation helps users avoid unreliable sources while supporting professional journalism.
Availability and Implementation
Comet Plus will be rolled out in the coming months to all Perplexity users, with the initial roster of publishing partners to be announced when Comet becomes publicly available.
Currently, Comet browser access is limited to Pro subscribers in the United States, with plans to expand access weekly.
News Gist
Perplexity has launched Comet Plus, a $5 subscription model supporting journalism by sharing 80% of revenue with publishers.
The initiative addresses publisher concerns over AI-driven traffic loss, ensuring sustainable partnerships between AI platforms, newsrooms, and readers through revenue-sharing incentives.
FAQ
1.What is Comet Plus?
Comet Plus is Perplexity’s $5/month subscription designed to support journalism by sharing revenue with publishers.
2.How does the revenue model work?
Publishers receive 80% of subscription revenue, based on user visits, AI citations, and agent interactions.
3.Why did Perplexity launch Comet Plus?
It was launched to counter criticism that AI search engines reduce publisher revenue and to build sustainable partnerships.
4.Who can access Comet Plus?
Standalone users at $5/month and existing Pro/Max subscribers.
5.What benefits do users get?
Access to high-quality, trusted journalism integrated into AI answers and searches.
6.How much funding backs this initiative?
Perplexity has allocated an initial $42.5 million revenue pool for publishers.
