Judge Dismisses Antitrust Lawsuits Over Google AI Search
AI-generated image · US National Wire
A federal court ruled that the economic harm caused by AI-powered search features does not constitute an antitrust violation.
US District Judge Amit Mehta has dismissed antitrust lawsuits filed in 2025 by Chegg and Penske Media Corporation (PMC), the parent company of Rolling Stone and Variety. The plaintiffs alleged that Google abused its monopoly power by harvesting content for AI Overviews, which diverted web traffic and reduced revenue for publishers.
According to reporting from Ars Technica, Chegg specifically claimed Google illegally scraped educational content to allow Gemini models to recreate that material. PMC argued it was unfair for sites indexed for organic search to have content harvested for AI answers without an opt-out mechanism. The Verge reports that the publishers accused Google of coercing them into providing content for free or risking disappearance from search results.
Judge Mehta ruled that these claims do not meet the threshold for antitrust law, stating that an "expectation" of search traffic is not a formal agreement. While Mehta noted he is not "unsympathetic" to the consequences facing journalists and educators, he wrote that the court cannot apply antitrust laws in place of legislative action to address the economic impact of "new innovation."
Despite the dismissal, Google continues to face global pressure. Ars Technica reports the UK has ordered Google to provide an AI opt-out for organic search, and the European Commission is currently reviewing similar issues. Additionally, The Information reports that Google is currently running a pilot program paying approximately 100 publishers for contributions to Gemini, AI Mode, and AI Overviews.