Penske Media, owner of Rolling Stone, Billboard, and Variety, sued Google on Friday, alleging its AI-generated summaries use publishers’ journalism without consent and reduce web traffic.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, DC, is the first by a major US publisher against Google over “AI Overviews,” which appear atop search results. Penske said Google only includes sites in search if their content is also used in summaries, leveraging its 90% US search market share.
The company claims about 20% of searches linking to its sites now display AI Overviews, contributing to a one-third drop in affiliate revenue since 2024. Penske argued publishers would otherwise be paid for republishing or training rights.
Google rejected the claims, saying AI Overviews improve the search experience and send traffic to more sites. The case comes amid wider publisher concerns that AI features are eroding advertising and subscription revenue.
