Penske set for major legal battle

We at GPFans are as impartial as it gets. We have no allegiance to any motorsports team or driver across NASCAR, IndyCar, F1 or otherwise, but we almost slipped from our noble position on the fence this week.

While Michael Jordan, Denny Hamlin and 23XI Racing are claiming a lot of headlines and column inches with their brutal court battle against NASCAR, we also noted that legal proceedings are in play for another famous racing name. And this time, we may just have to root for somebody.

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Penske Media Corporation, who own Formula E racing outfit DS Penske and whose CEO is Jay Penske, son of NASCAR and IndyCar team chief Roger, is set to take on the mighty Google in a courtroom battle over the search engine behemoth’s controversial use of AI overviews.

Penske Media Corporation has a ton of major digital titles under its belt - including Rolling Stone, Billboard, Variety, Hollywood Reporter, Deadline, Vibe, and Artforum - and it is making a stand.

Penske vs Google headed to court

Penske claims that Google’s use of online content to make AI overviews directly impacts its businesses. The search giant, remember, is already facing an antitrust complaint about the same issue in Europe.

The Penske suit says its media brands are in something of an impossible position, facing their search audience being diminished by AI overviews or being forced to exit Google search completely. This, it admits, would be “devastating”.

“As a leading global publisher, we have a duty to protect PMC’s best-in-class journalists and award-winning journalism as a source of truth," said CEO Jay Penske.

“Furthermore, we have a responsibility to proactively fight for the future of digital media and preserve its integrity - all of which is threatened by Google’s current actions.”

Google says it will fight what it describes as ‘meritless’ claims from Penske, with spokesperson José Castañeda saying in a statement: “Every day, Google sends billions of clicks to sites across the web, and AI Overviews send traffic to a greater diversity of sites. We will defend against these meritless claims.”

The suit was filed by Penske in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on September 12, as both sides begin what should be a fascinating legal battle with potentially enormous implications for media publishers around the world.

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