In today’s Digest, we discuss the FTC targeting Google and Amazon over search ads, Penske Media hitting Google with an AI suit, and a court denying Google’s request to halt Epic Play Store changes.

FTC targets Google & Amazon over search ads

Google and Amazon are under investigation by the US Federal Trade Commission over whether they misled advertisers on pricing and terms for search ads, according to a source familiar with the matter. The inquiry, led by the FTC’s consumer protection unit, is examining Amazon’s ad auctions and use of “reserve pricing”, as well as Google’s internal pricing process and whether ad costs were raised without properly disclosing changes to advertisers, the source said.

Both Google and Amazon are due to face trial on September 22 in separate federal antitrust cases. 

Penske Media Hits Google With AI Suit

Rolling Stone owner Penske Media Corporation (PMC) has filed a lawsuit against Google, alleging the company illegally used its content to generate AI summaries that undermine its business. PMC is the first to sue Google and parent company Alphabet over its AI Overviews feature, though other AI firms have faced similar copyright challenges. 

According to a statement, Penske Media CEO Jay Penske believes that as a global publisher they 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.”

Additionally, the lawsuit accuses Google of continuing to “wield its monopoly to coerce PMC into permitting Google to republish PMC’s content in AI Overviews” and of using that content to train its AI models. 

Court denies Google request to halt Epic Play Store changes

Google has lost its bid to extend a freeze on sweeping Play Store reforms, after a US Appeals Court rejected its request in the ongoing antitrust fight with Epic Games. The 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday rejected Google’s request to keep the order on hold, ruling the company had not met the high bar required to pause enforcement. The injunction compels Google to restore competition by allowing rival app stores to operate within Play and by making its app catalog available to competitors, among other measures.

Google said it was “disappointed” with the ruling and warned the reforms could harm user security and privacy, while CEO Tim Sweeney of Epic praised the decision as a win for developers and consumers.