Italian Publishers Demand Inquiry into Google’s AI Overviews
Italian news publishers are urging a thorough investigation into Google’s AI Overviews, asserting that the search engine’s feature, which generates summaries, acts as a “traffic killer” jeopardizing their existence.
The Italian federation of newspaper publishers (FIEG) has lodged a formal grievance with Agcom, the nation’s communications regulatory authority.
Similar allegations have emerged in various other EU nations. Orchestrated by the European Newspaper Publishers’ Association, the collective effort aims to prompt the European Commission to initiate an inquiry against Google under the auspices of the EU Digital Services Act.
The peril associated with AI Overviews, which provides users with information devoid of the necessity to click through to the original source by recording searches at the pinnacle of the results page, remains a primary concern for European media outlets.
In addition, FIEG has expressed trepidation regarding the newer AI Mode, which amalgamates information from numerous sources and represents it in a chatbot format.
The federation contends that these Google services “infringe upon essential tenets of the Digital Services Act, resulting in adverse implications for Italian users, consumers, and enterprises.”
FIEG articulated, “Google is evolving into a traffic killer,” asserting that these products not only compete directly with the content generated by publishers but also “diminish their visibility and discoverability, consequently impacting their advertising revenues.”
The statement elaborated, “This poses serious ramifications for the economic viability and diversity of the media, alongside the attendant risks of a lack of transparency and the spread of misinformation within democratic discourse.”
A study conducted in July by the UK-based analytics firm Authoritas indicated that the AI Overviews, which debuted last year, resulted in up to an 80% decline in clickthrough rates.
This research was utilized as part of a legal complaint submitted to the UK’s competition authority concerning the repercussions of Google AI Overviews.
It was also noted that links to YouTube—owned by Google’s parent entity, Alphabet—were disproportionately highlighted compared to the conventional search result framework.
Moreover, a subsequent study by the Pew Research Center, a notable US think tank, revealed a significant detriment to referral traffic emanating from Google AI Overviews, indicating that users engaged with a link beneath an AI summary only once in every 100 attempts.
In response, Google has dismissed these studies as inaccurate and based on deficient methodology.
Google AI Overviews made their debut in Italy in March. By September, Italy became the inaugural EU nation to endorse a comprehensive statute governing the utilization of artificial intelligence, incorporating restrictions on child access and establishing penalties for those who exploit technology to inflict harm, such as creating deepfakes.
Giorgia Meloni’s administration characterized the legislation, which aligns with the EU’s groundbreaking AI Act, as a pivotal maneuver in determining the application of AI throughout Italy.
Source link: Theguardian.com.
