Google is facing a fresh lawsuit from Penske Media Corporation (PMC), the parent company of publications like Rolling Stone, Billboard, Variety, and Hollywood Reporter. The lawsuit accuses Google of illegally using publisher content to generate AI summaries that undermine traffic, revenue, and the sustainability of journalism.
PMC argues that while publishers allow Google to index their sites in exchange for referral traffic, Google has tied this bargain to AI Overviews, which repurpose content without consent. According to the complaint, Penske has seen “significant declines in clicks from Google searches since Google started rolling out AI Overviews,” threatening advertising, subscription, and affiliate revenue streams.
Jay Penske, CEO of PMC, said:
“As a leading global publisher, we have a duty to protect PMC’s best-in-class journalists and award-winning journalism as a source of truth. We also have a responsibility to proactively fight for the future of digital media and preserve its integrity, all of which is threatened by Google’s current actions.”
Google, however, defended its AI Overviews. Spokesperson José Castañeda stated the feature makes search “more helpful” and drives “traffic to a greater diversity of sites,” dismissing PMC’s claims as “meritless.”
The lawsuit also alleges Google is using PMC’s content to train its AI models while coercing publishers into compliance, or risk being removed from Google Search entirely, which would be “devastating.”
This legal action comes as Google continues to face global scrutiny over AI. In Europe, regulators are investigating AI Overviews for antitrust concerns, while in the U.S., the company narrowly avoided a breakup order in a separate monopoly case.
Related: People Inc. CEO Accuses Google of Using Publisher Content to Fuel AI Products
With publishers worldwide already accusing AI companies of exploiting their work, PMC’s lawsuit marks a significant escalation in the fight between journalism and tech giants over the future of content in the AI era.
