Rolling Stone’s parent company and Chegg have alleged that Google’s AI search features diverted traffic away from their websites.
A federal judge has dismissed a pair of antitrust lawsuits filed by Chegg and Penske Media Corporation, the parent of Rolling Stone, which claimed Google drove web traffic away using its AI-powered search features. U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta sided with Google on Wednesday, ruling that PMC and Chegg’s claims do not meet the standards of antitrust law.
In lawsuits filed last year, Chegg and PMC accused Google of abusing its monopoly power by compelling publishers to supply content for AI Overviews for free, or risk disappearing from search results. The publishers argued that Google’s practices diverted traffic from their sites, negatively impacting their revenue.
Judge Mehta, who issued a landmark antitrust ruling against Google in 2024, disagrees with Chegg and PMC. “Plaintiffs have pleaded only that they have an ‘expectation’ that Google will send them search traffic if they make their content available for free,” Mehta wrote. “But an expectation is not an agreement. It is simply how a general search engine works.”
Mehta added that the court is not “unsympathetic to the situation publishers now find themselves in,” but stated that antitrust rules cannot replace legislative decisions regarding the economic impact of “new innovation.”
Meanwhile, websites continue to feel the effects of Google’s AI-powered search overhaul, with traffic to news publishers and small websites taking a steep dive. This week, The Information reported that Google is paying around 100 publishers for their contributions to AI Overviews, AI Mode, and Gemini as part of a pilot program.
Disclosure: The Verge is part of Penske Media.
The Editorial Staff at AIChief is a team of professional content writers with extensive experience in AI and marketing. Founded in 2025, AIChief has quickly grown into the largest free AI resource hub in the industry.