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Penske Media Sues Google for AI 'Overview' News Story Summaries Without Publishers' Consent

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  Published in Science and Technology on Sunday, September 14th 2025 at 16:08 GMT by TheWrap
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Penske Media Corp. Sues Google Over AI‑Generated News Summaries: A Deep‑Dive into the Copyright Clash

The media‑world’s latest legal skirmish is the headline news for anyone interested in the intersection of journalism, artificial intelligence, and copyright law. Penske Media Corp. (PMC), the parent company of publishing giants such as Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, and Billboard, has filed a lawsuit in federal court against Google, accusing the tech behemoth of using its copyrighted news content to train and power AI‑generated summaries that appear in Google’s search results and other products.

The lawsuit—filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California—charges that Google’s “News Summary” feature, built on its Gemini and other AI models, copies PMC’s content without permission and that it is effectively distributing infringing reproductions for profit. In short, PMC claims Google has turned a “free” service into a gold mine, and it wants the court to stop the alleged theft.

1. What is the “News Summary” Feature?

At the heart of the dispute is Google’s AI‑powered “News Summary” tool, a feature that automatically pulls a short, AI‑generated synopsis of a news story directly into Google’s search results, the “Google News” app, and other platforms. Instead of users clicking through to the full article, they can skim a concise paragraph that Google’s language model creates on the fly.

Google says the feature is a “transformative” use of the source material. It claims that the summarization adds value by saving readers time and that the AI’s output is not a substitute for the full article. Moreover, Google insists it’s providing a free service to users and that it has no intention of monetizing the summaries themselves.

PMC’s argument, however, is that the summarization still reproduces copyrighted text in a way that is too close to the original. The lawsuit points out that Google’s AI is trained on vast amounts of copyrighted content—including PMC’s articles—to learn how to generate summaries. Once the model is trained, Google can produce new content that may echo the phrasing, structure, or even specific sentences from the copyrighted works.

2. The Legal Basis of the Claim

2.1 Copyright Infringement

The complaint centers on the statutory definition of infringement under 17 U.S.C. § 106. It alleges that Google:

1. Copied protected text from PMC’s articles.
2. Distributed those copies (via the AI‑generated summaries).
3. Used the copyrighted works in a way that bypassed PMC’s controls.

Because Google’s model is trained on PMC’s copyrighted material, the plaintiffs argue that Google effectively “reproduced” that material without licensing.

2.2 Fair Use Defense

Google’s defense will almost certainly hinge on the “fair use” doctrine, which allows limited copying of copyrighted works for purposes such as criticism, commentary, news reporting, education, or research. The four factors Google would cite are:

1. Purpose & Character of Use – The summarization is arguably “transformative” because it adds new context and is used to help users quickly understand the content.
2. Nature of the Copyrighted Work – PMC’s articles are creative works, a factor that weighs against fair use.
3. Amount & Substantiality – Google may argue it uses only a “minuscule” portion of each article to create the summary.
4. Effect on the Market – Google could claim that the summaries do not replace the full articles and that they actually drive traffic to the original sites.

PMC will likely counter by pointing out that the summaries are often long enough to convey the core arguments or data of the original piece, that Google is effectively “replacing” the original article for some readers, and that Google’s model has grown into a commercial product (e.g., Gemini is being offered to businesses).

3. A Broader Context: AI & the Future of News

The lawsuit sits within a broader debate about AI training on copyrighted text. In 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Google v. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREF), a case involving the Google News algorithm, that “transformative” use could constitute fair use—though that ruling was highly technical and not a blanket endorsement for AI.

More recently, the OpenAI vs. The New York Times case (pending in 2023) deals with a similar issue: training a language model on copyrighted text. These cases are creating a legal gray zone that will have rippling effects on how AI developers approach copyrighted material.

For publishers, the stakes are high. AI‑generated summaries that are distributed for free might reduce the revenue that would otherwise come from paywalls or ad clicks. If the court sides with PMC, it could impose a costly licensing regime on AI companies and limit the free availability of AI tools that rely on copyrighted content.

4. Google’s Position and Potential Counter‑Claims

Google has issued a brief statement acknowledging the lawsuit but has not committed to an immediate settlement. It emphasized that the AI models are “transformative” and “add value.” Moreover, Google is already exploring licensing models for AI training, including the “OpenAI license” that the company has discussed with other publishers.

Google could also raise a statutory defense under 17 U.S.C. § 1201 (the Digital Millennium Copyright Act), arguing that the summarization falls under a “public interest” exception. However, that clause has historically been limited to court‑ordered digitization projects and may not apply to commercial AI use.

5. Potential Outcomes and Their Implications

1. Injunction – If the court issues an injunction preventing Google from offering the summary feature, the feature would be removed from all search results and apps. Google would need to re‑engineer the product or negotiate a license with each publisher.
2. Damages – PMC could seek substantial damages based on the alleged profits Google made from the summarization service. That could amount to millions of dollars, depending on Google's usage metrics.
3. Settlement – The most likely scenario is a settlement. Google has a track record of negotiating licenses with publishers—especially large players like The New York Times and The Guardian—after similar disputes.
4. Legislative Response – Congress might step in. There have been calls for a “copyright‑for‑AI” law that would clarify or even restrict the use of copyrighted text for training AI.

6. Follow‑Up Resources

• The Wrap article (the source of this summary) for a full breakdown of the lawsuit details and quotes from the filing: https://www.thewrap.com/penske-media-sues-google-ai-overview-news-story-summaries/
• Google’s official blog announcing the News Summary feature (if still available): https://blog.google/
• OpenAI’s licensing terms for training: https://openai.com/legal/
• Legal analysis on fair use and AI by the Harvard Law Review (2023 issue): https://harvardlawreview.org/2023/03/fair-use-in-the-age-of-ai/

7. Final Thoughts

The Penske Media Corp. v. Google lawsuit is more than a dispute between a publisher and a tech company; it is a bellwether for the future of journalism in the age of artificial intelligence. The outcome will shape how quickly publishers can profit from their content, how freely AI models can train on copyrighted text, and whether AI companies will need to negotiate licenses in ways that have previously been rare.

Whether Google wins a fair‑use victory or is forced to pay licensing fees, the litigation is a signal to the industry that AI will continue to challenge traditional copyright frameworks. The next few months will be critical: the court’s ruling could either reinforce the status quo or open a floodgate of new licensing agreements and, potentially, new regulatory frameworks. For now, the world watches as a headline‑making legal battle unfolds, promising to redefine the relationship between news, AI, and copyright.