The media giant says the system would make it easier for websites to charge for content on a pay-per-article basis.

Users of Google's service would use a single set of login details, which would grant access to a number of websites.

News International said last month that it would be charging for access to its sites within 12 months. Other publishers are  expected to follow suite.

Question marks have been raised as to how this could happen. Potential solutions include a subscription-based model, with access only available to subscribers; a pay-per-article model, which would see a user paying only for the stories they read; or a combination of the two.

If Google goes ahead with its plan, which was outlined in a proposal to the Newspaper Association of America, it could see publishers leaning towards the pay per article model.

Publishers argue that online content, which currently only garners revenue through advertising, should be valued the same as printed content.

It is believed by many that having a small number of paid users is more financially valuable than a large number of readers with revenues coming from advertising.