\u201cBuilding on this framework, and working with the web ecosystem, we\u2019re now exploring updates to our controls to let sites specifically opt out of Search generative AI features.\u201d<\/p> <\/blockquote>
Google provided no timeline, technical specifications, or firm commitment. The post frames this as exploration, not a product roadmap.<\/p>
Google currently offers several controls for how content appears in Search, but none cleanly separate AI features from traditional results.<\/p>
Google-Extended lets publishers block their content from training Gemini and Vertex AI models. But Google\u2019s documentation states Google-Extended doesn\u2019t impact inclusion in Google Search and isn\u2019t a ranking signal. It controls AI training, not AI Overviews appearance.<\/p>
The nosnippet and max-snippet directives do apply to AI Overviews and AI Mode. But they also affect traditional snippets in regular search results. Publishers wanting to limit AI feature exposure currently lose snippet visibility everywhere.<\/p>
Google\u2019s post acknowledges this gap exists. Eden wrote:<\/p>
\u201cAny new controls need to avoid breaking Search in a way that leads to a fragmented or confusing experience for people.\u201d<\/p> <\/blockquote>
Why This Matters<\/h2>
I wrote in SEJ\u2019s SEO Trends 2026 ebook that people would have more influence on the direction of search than platforms do. Google\u2019s post suggests that dynamic is playing out.<\/p>
Publishers and regulators have spent the past year pushing back on AI Overviews. The UK\u2019s Independent Publishers Alliance, Foxglove, and Movement for an Open Web filed a complaint with the CMA last July, asking for the ability to opt out of AI summaries without being removed from search entirely. The US Department of Justice and South African Competition Commission have proposed similar measures.<\/p>
The BuzzStream study we covered earlier this month found 79% of top news publishers block at least one AI training bot, and 71% block retrieval bots that affect AI citations. Publishers are already voting with their robots.txt files.<\/p>
Google\u2019s post suggests it\u2019s responding to pressure from the ecosystem by exploring controls it previously didn\u2019t offer.<\/p>
Looking Ahead<\/h2>
Google\u2019s language is cautious. \u201cExploring\u201d and \u201cworking with the web ecosystem\u201d are not product commitments.<\/p>
The CMA consultation will gather input on potential requirements. Regulatory processes move slowly, but they do produce outcomes. The EU\u2019s Digital Markets Act investigations have already pushed Google to make changes in Europe.<\/p>
For now, publishers wanting to limit AI feature exposure can use nosnippet or max-snippet directives, but note that these affect traditional snippets as well. Google\u2019s robots meta tag documentation covers the current options.<\/p>
If Google follows through on specific opt-out controls, the technical implementation will matter. Whether it\u2019s a new robots directive, a Search Console setting, or something else will determine how practical it is for publishers to use.<\/p>
Featured Image: ANDRANIK HAKOBYAN\/Shutterstock<\/em><\/p> <\/div> Generative AI,News#Google #Sites #Opt #Search #Features #sejournal #MattGSouthern1769609701<\/p> ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Google says it\u2019s exploring updates that could let websites opt out of AI-powered search features specifically. The blog post came the same day the UK\u2019s Competition and Markets Authority opened a consultation on potential new requirements for Google Search, including controls for websites to manage their content in Search AI features. Ron Eden, Principal, Product […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2361,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[93,75,90,6645,95,80,3181],"class_list":["post-2360","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-accessibility","tag-features","tag-google","tag-mattgsouthern","tag-opt","tag-search","tag-sejournal","tag-sites"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2360","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2360"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2360\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2361"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2360"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2360"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2360"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}