CMA imposes conduct requirement on Google search
UK publishers must actively exercise opt-out rights with Google once controls are implemented to prevent their content being used for AI Overviews and AI model fine-tuning — publishers that do not act will have their content used for AI features by default.
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OFSI
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Change
On 3 June 2026 the CMA imposed a conduct requirement on Google Search requiring Google to provide publishers with controls to opt out of AI content use (AI Overviews and model fine-tuning) and to ensure clear linked attribution in AI-generated results; Google has nine months to implement and must publish six-monthly compliance reports.
Why it matters
The requirement limits Google's ability to deploy AI-driven search features using publisher content without permission and forces configuration changes to search presentation and model-training pipelines. Publishers — including news organisations and digital content publishers — must actively engage with Google's opt-out controls once implemented; failure to do so means their content is used for AI features by default. The CMA will enforce compliance via six-monthly reports and has signalled further conduct requirements are forthcoming.
Implications
- — UK digital content publishers and news organisations must engage with Google's opt-out mechanisms once implemented to prevent their content being used for AI Overviews and AI model fine-tuning — publishers that do not act will have their content used for AI features by default.
- — Publisher legal and commercial teams must update content licensing and AI use policies to reflect the new opt-out rights and use them as a baseline in negotiations with Google over AI content use.
- — Google search product, engineering, and compliance teams must implement publisher opt-out controls, clear attribution links, and six-monthly compliance reports within nine months — failure to implement constitutes non-compliance with the SMS conduct requirement.
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