A group of independent European publishers has filed a formal antitrust complaint against Google, alleging that the company’s AI-generated summaries, called AI Overviews, are significantly hurting their traffic and revenue. New York Post has reported that the complaint, submitted to the European Commission on June 30 by the Independent Publishers Alliance, accuses Google of abusing its dominance in online search by prioritising its own AI content over original publisher links.
Concerns over traffic loss and ‘zero-click’ searches
At the core of the complaint is the claim that Google’s AI Overviews reduce user engagement with news sites by displaying AI-generated summaries above search results. After the feature's introduction in May 2024, 37 of the top 50 US news outlets saw year-on-year traffic declines, as per data from analytics firm SimilarWeb.The firm also found that “zero-click” searches — queries that don’t lead users to click any links — rose sharply for news-related content, from 56% in May 2024 to 69% in May 2025.
The publishers argue that Google’s system discourages readers from visiting original content sources, undermining the economic model of digital journalism. They have asked the European Commission to impose interim measures to prevent what they call “irreparable harm.”
Publishers say there is no opt-out without a penalty
The filing states that publishers using Google Search cannot prevent their content from being used to train Google’s AI models or featured in summaries, unless they also accept a drop in visibility on search results pages. This, the complainants argue, gives Google an unfair advantage and limits publisher autonomy.
The Movement for an Open Web and UK-based nonprofit Foxglove Legal are also supporting the complaint. Rosa Curling, co-director of Foxglove, cautioned that Google's strategy could imperil independent journalism's very existence.
Google pushes back, says AI helps content discovery
Google has rejected the accusations, maintaining that AI Overviews help users ask broader questions and improve content discovery. A spokesperson for the company said that Google continues to send billions of clicks to websites each day and emphasized that search traffic fluctuates for various reasons, including algorithm updates and changing user interests.
The EU complaint echoes similar concerns raised in the United States, where a separate lawsuit has been filed alleging that AI Overviews reduce demand for original content and harm competition.
Google, which is already appealing a €4.3 billion fine over Android-related practices, remains under regulatory scrutiny in both Europe and the US. Last year, a separate US antitrust ruling determined that the company had unlawfully monopolised digital advertising markets.
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