[FLASH] Judge Mehta dismisses Penske Media and Chegg antitrust suits over Google AI Overviews; Chegg -9%
Judge Amit Mehta (D.D.C.) dismissed the Penske Media and Chegg suits alleging Google unlawfully conditioned search indexing on using publisher content for AI Overviews, finding no formal bargain was struck with Google; Chegg fell about 9% on 10-01. For the answer-engine economy the ruling removes the leading legal route by which publishers sought payment for AI-summary usage, leaving voluntary licensing (The Information's 09-29 report of a Google publisher-payment pilot) and paywall/metering tools as the live mechanisms. Watch for appeals and whether the separate SDNY ad-tech damages case (Judge Castel denied Google summary judgment 09-30; ~$3.2B treble-eligible) shifts Google's posture.