Tech giant Google faces a lawsuit from an American media company, alleging that the AI in Google's search engine infringes upon copyright laws.
In a recent development, Penske Media, the media conglomerate behind popular publications such as Rolling Stone and Hollywood Reporter, has filed a lawsuit against Google in the Washington court that ruled on Google's search engine monopoly last year. The lawsuit alleges that Google's AI-generated summaries before search results disadvantage free content providers.
Google denies the allegation, stating that their AI overviews create new opportunities for discovering content online. A Google spokesperson said, "Users find search more helpful with AI-generated summaries."
The lawsuit comes at a time when Google is facing new rivals that promise users direct answers using AI instead of links to information on other websites. These competitors include OpenAI with ChatGPT Search, Perplexity, and Microsoft with Bing Copilot, alongside Google's own AI Overviews service.
Despite these new rivals, Google's business continues to grow rapidly. The company claims that it directs "billions of clicks" to other websites daily. However, Penske Media claims that Google aims to become the destination instead of a gateway to other websites.
The allegation is that Google's feature answers users' queries, leading them to skip visiting the original websites. This, according to Penske Media, is only possible due to Google's search engine monopoly. The lawsuit further alleges that Google's actions violate U.S. antitrust laws.
Google has expanded the use of AI-generated summaries since last year. The company claims that these summaries make the circle of content discovery more diverse. However, the lawsuit suggests otherwise, arguing that these summaries limit the exposure of free content providers.
This is not the first time Google has faced antitrust scrutiny. Last year, the same court ruled that Google had a search engine monopoly. The outcome of this latest lawsuit remains to be seen.
As the case progresses, it will be interesting to see how Google responds and how it affects the future of search engine technology. Stay tuned for updates on this developing story.
