UK media websites have been given the power to block Google from using their articles in AI searches.

The British competition authority has announced that online publishers and news agencies can now prevent their content from being found in the UK. Medium Google .

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) indicated that the new requirement would “let publishers such as news agencies be involved in Go.ogle is in a better position to negotiate content transactions.”

Many media outlets complained of a decline in both the number of hits on their websites and income since Google began placing artificial intelligence summaries at the top of its search page. Many read these without clicking on the original news reports.

To date, the website has not been able to choose not to exit the AI summary, rather than the traditional Google search. Given its market dominance, this would reduce the visibility of its news coverage.

The Media Association, representing British news publishers such as The Guardian, stated that this decision was “an important step towards a level playing field and a fair and transparent digital economy, with proper respect for quality content and fair compensation”.

Google stated that new controls would be tested on a part of the British media website from Wednesday to allow owners to manage the display of their links and content in their AI search function, with the aim of promoting the control globally.

These new measures are one of the measures announced by CMA to relax Google's search controls, which the regulator said would “ensure a fairer deal for publishers and consumers and improve Google's search services in the United Kingdom”.

It indicated that Google now needed to ensure that clear links were used in the search results generated by artificial intelligence, with the correct attribution of the publisher content, to enhance consumer confidence.

CMA indicated that the new measures fell within the scope of the British digital market competition regime and were taken following the decision to designate Google as a strategic market position in the area of general search services. For the first time in January, it presented the idea of an artificially intelligent summary search opting out.

Sarah Cardell, Chief Executive Officer of the Supervisory Authority, stated that “it is essential that content publishers, including news agencies, have the right bargaining power to use their content”.

She referred to this as “the world's first demand for Google's search service in the United Kingdom” and said that it would bring “fair treatment, greater transparency and meaningful choices” to businesses and consumers.

According to CMA, this technology company accounts for more than 90 per cent of the average British search volume, so publishers and news agencies rely on search results to attract consumers to their websites.

CMA had previously estimated that the annual cost of searching advertising per British household was equivalent to nearly Pound500, which could be reduced through effective competition.

It is alleged that Google announced in May a major overhaul of its search platform, which could fundamentally change the way in which the search results are presented to British users. CMA indicated that the new behavioural requirements would also apply to these changes, adding that it would monitor Google ' s behaviour and assess the impact on enterprises.

On behalf of the publisher on Google Search, Geradin Partners’ competition lawyer, former CEO of CMA, Tom Lewis, said that these changes would help publishers to maintain some control over how this American technology company uses its work.

“Congratulations should be made to CMA for solving this problem. Their goal was to compete on key digital platforms,” he said, adding that Google's plan to introduce change on a global scale was “a great victory”.

The regulator also indicated that further announcements relating to Google search operations would be issued in the coming weeks.

In an op-ed published on Wednesday, Google indicated that it was working with regulators such as CMA to “ensure that website owners have the right tools as user preferences change”.

Mrinalini Loew, General Manager of Google Search Ecosystems, stated that the company was beginning to test a new tool that allowed website owners to manage the way their links and content are displayed in artificial intelligence search functions, such as artificial intelligence profiles and artificial intelligence models.

She said, “We have started to roll out these features to some of the UK's site owners in order to test them thoroughly before they are launched to the global site owners.”

Lefe added that the control would not be used as a ranking signal for the results of a search outside the artificial intelligence search function.