Newspaper publishers would get the right to curb the online use of their content, allowing them to demand payment from Google News and other sites that use clips of their articles, under new European Union draft copyright rules published Wednesday.

Regulators are seeking to protect publishers and creators when their work is made available on the internet, often without payment. Publishers complain that Google, owned by Alphabet Inc., is free-riding by making profits from advertising shown next to their content.

While the EU’s draft rules aim to overhaul outdated and fragmented copyright rules for the digital age, they may harm internet companies’ ability to offer services in Europe. Google shut its news portal in Spain in 2014 after copyright legislation allowed publishers charge for content used by other websites.

“This proposal provides for a new right for press publishers aiming at facilitating online licensing of their publications, the recoupment of their investment and the enforcement of their rights,” the European Commission said in a text of the proposal published on its website. "Fair sharing of value is also necessary to ensure the sustainability of the press publications sector."

Google didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the EU proposals, which would need the approval of governments and the EU parliament to become law.

Musicians’ Power

The EU is also aiming to strengthen musicians in negotiations with publishers, which might allow them get extra payments from an unexpected bestseller. Authors and performers often transfer their rights against an up-front payment. The EU is suggesting they should be able to see how much their work generates and should be able to renegotiate if they think the deal was unfair.

Websites such as Google’s YouTube may have to more actively screen content to check for video or music that infringes copyright. They should take "appropriate and proportionate measures to ensure protection" of copyrighted works, the EU said, citing content-recognition technologies.

Online sites should inform copyright holders how well such tools are working and provide ways for them to complain and seek compensation, the commission said.

Google uses ContentID to verify whether videos on YouTube infringe copyright and says it has paid out $2 billion to rightsholders.

The EU is separately probing Google’s power over search results, online advertising and its mobile phone software Android.

Wednesday’s plan to boost the rights of publishers versus websites follows last week’s key ruling on hyperlinks at the bloc’s top court.

Judges said Playboy’s Dutch publisher can stop a news and entertainment website from posting links to its images without permission.