BERLIN — In private sessions this summer, giant publishers and media companies from Germany, France and elsewhere have met with European officials about proposals to regulate Europe’s digital economy. The discussions have covered a broad range of contentious issues, according to public disclosures and several people who attended or were briefed on the meetings. Central to almost all of them has been limiting the reach of a single American company: Google.

The company has a long list of detractors crying foul about how it operates in Europe, including rivals like Microsoft and Yelp. But as Europeans take a lead globally in regulating the Internet and containing American tech companies, the Continent’s old media — influential newspaper and magazine publishers — are emerging as one of Google’s most persistent adversaries.

With Google attracting attention and ad revenue that once funneled to publishers, the goal is clear: Find ways to make more money, by strengthening copyright rules and limiting Google’s power as an advertising platform.

The publishers, including Axel Springer of Germany and Lagardère of France, arguably have the most to lose from the dominance of Google and other West Coast companies, as they look for revenue on the web to replace losses in print. Some of the publishers, in an effort to buttress their business, have even turned to e-commerce and social networking — areas that have intensified the rivalry with Google and other tech companies.