Google in the crosshairs of the European Union. An investigation has been launched into whether Google violated competition rules by using content published online by media outlets and other publishers to train and provide artificial intelligence services without adequate compensation.
European Union investigation into Google
“We are investigating – explained the Executive Vice President of the Commission with responsibility for Antitrust, Teresa Ribera – whether Google may have imposed unfair terms and conditions on publishers and content creators, while at the same time putting developers of rival artificial intelligence models at a disadvantage, in violation of EU competition rules”.
The MEPs of the 5 Star Movement Mario Furore and Gaetano Pedullà speak of “good news for the free press and journalism”.
“We had submitted a question to the European Commission to denounce this abuse of a dominant position and we are pleased that the response was immediate. Publishers complain of a significant drop in clicks to external sources from search engines of up to 30% and an increase in zero-click searches in the last six months. It is the AI Overviews effect, a clearly incorrect practice that unduly uses the contents of Italian and European publishers through the use of AI. We confidently await the outcome of this investigation. The Commission was present at the European Parliament a legislative proposal to regulate this new extension of artificial intelligence. The 5 Star Movement will do its part.”
