# EU court adviser says AI chatbot answers can infringe press publishers' rights

Published: 2026-11-08T05:02:15.032Z · Source: Court of Justice of the European Union (press release 155/26) (https://curia.europa.eu/site/upload/docs/application/pdf/2026-11/cp260155en.pdf)
Second source: IPWatchdog (https://ipwatchdog.com/2026/11/04/cjeu-advocate-general-outlines-copyright-limits-for-ai-news-summaries/)
Source date: 2026-11-03
Entities: gemini, google, ai-litigation

Advocate General Maciej Szpunar, an adviser to the Court of Justice of the European Union, said on Nov. 3 that an AI chatbot that fetches news articles in real time to write its answers can, in some cases, infringe the right EU law gives press publishers over online use of their articles. The case, C-250/25 Like Company v Google, is the first about generative AI to reach the court: a Hungarian publisher says Google's Gemini reused its articles between June 2023 and May 2024. Per the court's press release, the opinion sets two tests. The first is whether the chatbot reached the article unlawfully, for example by getting around a paywall or a block on bots. The second is whether the answer only reports facts or reuses the article's wording so recognisably that the reader no longer needs the original. Facts alone are not protected.

Szpunar said the chatbot's provider is liable where that reuse is built into its business model, or where it has not taken credible steps to stop it. He proposed that the court not answer the case's two training questions, since there was no evidence the articles were used to train Gemini, but said training is, as a rule, allowed under EU law's text and data mining exception (the rule that lets material be copied for automated analysis). He also rejected Google's argument that leaving articles open online amounts to consent, per IPWatchdog's reading of the full opinion. The opinion is not binding; the judges are now deliberating and will rule later.

Why it matters: If the court follows the opinion, whether a publisher put up a paywall or a bot block becomes part of the legal test for AI answers in the EU, so blocking decisions would carry legal weight, not only technical effect.

## What this answers

**Do AI chatbot answers infringe news publishers' rights in the EU?**

Not decided yet. On Nov. 3 an adviser to the EU's Court of Justice said they can when the chatbot got around a paywall or a bot block to reach the article, or when its answer reuses the article's wording so recognisably that readers no longer need the original. The court rules later and does not have to follow him.

**Is training AI on news articles legal in the EU?**

The adviser in Like Company v Google proposed that the court not answer that question in this case, because there was no evidence the articles were used for training, but said training is, as a rule, allowed under EU law's text and data mining exception.


Canonical: https://anythingengineoptimization.com/item/2026-11-08-eu-court-adviser-says-ai-chatbot-answers-can-infringe-press/
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