The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has issued a conduct rule requiring Google to allow website owners to exclude their content from specific AI-powered search features. In response, Google has announced a new control tool and is beginning a testing phase with a subset of UK publishers.
Regulatory Action and Publisher Controls
The CMA's ruling mandates that Google provide mechanisms for publishers to prevent their content from being used in AI Overviews, AI Mode, and AI Overviews in Google Discover. The regulation also requires that publishers can opt out of having their content used to fine-tune Google's AI models. Additionally, Google must ensure that any publisher content included in AI-generated search results provides clear attribution through links.
New Publisher Tools
Google has introduced a toggle in Google Search Console that allows publishers to manage the use of their content in AI search features. According to Google, websites that choose to opt out entirely from these AI features will not receive traffic or impressions from them, but will continue to appear in standard Google Search and Discover results. The company has stated that the opt-out control will not be used as a ranking signal for non-AI search results.
"Websites that choose to opt out entirely from these AI features will not receive traffic or impressions from them, but will continue to appear in standard Google Search and Discover results."
New Search Console insights are also being provided, showing publishers which of their webpages appear in AI responses and in which countries those impressions occur.
Rollout and Background
Google has begun rolling out these controls to a subset of UK website owners for testing, with plans to make them available globally after the testing phase concludes. The company reports that AI Overviews has over 2.5 billion monthly active users globally, while AI Mode has over 1 billion users.
According to the CMA, the ruling is intended to give publishers stronger negotiating power regarding content deals with Google. Google previously opposed granting publishers such controls, citing that AI search features are evolving into a monetization space.