Now Reading: French publishers seek regulator action against Google AI summaries
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French publishers seek regulator action against Google AI summaries
French publishers seek regulator action against Google AI summaries
French news publishers have asked the country’s competition regulator to stop Google from using their content for AI-generated search summaries without payment. The APIG association, which represents newspapers and magazines, says the…
The Story in Brief
French news publishers have asked the country’s competition regulator to stop Google from using their content for AI-generated search summaries without payment. The APIG association, which represents newspapers and magazines, says the AI Overviews launched in late July have cut traffic to publisher websites by 33 to 38 per cent, according to estimates from regulator Arcom. Separate research by Ahrefs found that click-through rates for the top search result dropped 58 per cent for queries with AI answers.
Google already reached a compensation agreement with French media in 2022 after earlier fines, including a €500 million penalty for failing to negotiate in good faith. APIG argues the AI summaries violate that deal. The publishers want the regulator to take the same approach it used against Meta in July, when it ordered the company to submit a payment plan. The European Union also has an open probe into whether Google is breaching competition rules by using publishers’ content for AI without proper compensation.
The Indian Opinion
Two familiar sides are talking past each other. Publishers call Google’s AI summaries theft of content that drives traffic down by a third. Google says its feature answers users directly. Missing from the debate: a fair price for that information. The 2022 compensation deal clearly did not anticipate generative AI. The real test is whether France’s regulator applies the same remedy it just ordered against Meta, forced negotiations and a payment proposal. If it does, the value of a click versus a summary will finally have a number.
Sources (2): timesnownews.com, medianama.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
