Google ordered to put clearer links in AI search and let UK publishers opt out

Google said last month that it would add more links to websites in AI Overviews, but it opposed the attribution requirement in its formal response to the CMA proceeding in February. Google said it is “already motivated to strike the right balance between attribution and usability.” “Excessive attribution of lots of sources may worsen the user experience and lead to fewer clicks; not more,” Google told the CMA. “But too little attribution and publishers may decide to opt out, depriving Google of their content for grounding Search genAI features.” Google also objected to the CMA’s opt-out rule. But now that the proceeding is over, Google today announced new controls for website owners in response to the UK directive. “Today, we’re beginning to test a new control that lets website owners manage how their links and content appear in generative AI Search features,” Google said. “With this new toggle in Search Console, website owners can decide if they want their site to appear in and help ground responses in our generative AI Search features (like AI Overviews, AI Mode or AI Overviews in Discover). Sites that opt out will not receive traffic or impressions from our generative AI features. This control will not be used as a ranking signal for search results outside of these generative AI Search features.” Google also said it is giving website owners more data through the Search Console, including “impressions metrics and information about which pages appear in AI responses and in what countries.” It said the Search Console changes are now being provided “to a subset of website owners in the UK, allowing for thorough testing before rolling them out to website owners globally.” As for opt-outs, the CMA notice said “Google shall provide publishers with effective controls to withhold their Search Content from being used in generative AI services and features.” The opt-outs must cover the training and grounding of Google’s broader generative AI services and its AI search features, the CMA said. For Google’s AI search features, the CMA said opt-outs must be available to publishers at both the directory and page levels. Google’s February response to the CMA proposal argued that the company’s “current opt-outs are sufficient and effective.” The firm told the CMA that it would “be disproportionate to require Google to offer page-level opt-outs. Constantly crawling and re-crawling content that is constantly being opted in and out will increase costs for Google, and thereafter increase crawl costs for publishers. It may lead to user confusion and a fragmented and inconsistent user experience.” Today’s CMA’s decision rejected this argument, saying that regulators “have not seen evidence suggesting that enabling publishers to exercise page-level controls would require increased crawling activity.” It said Google eventually conceded to the CMA that it would be possible to introduce page-level controls if given enough time. The CMA said the nine-month deadline should provide “sufficient time to carry out additional technical work to design and implement these aspects of the control effectively.” Google must provide an implementation plan within one month, the decision said. The News Media Association, a trade group in the UK, said that “the legally enforceable Conduct Requirements for Google Search published today are a significant step towards leveling the playing field and building a fair, transparent digital economy where premium content is properly respected and fairly compensated.” The group called on the UK to implement “robust enforcement.”