AI chatbots are revolutionizing the internet ecosystem, presenting unprecedented challenges for publishers. Chatbots from companies like OpenAI and Google appear to be absorbing much-needed website traffic, significantly impacting news and content creators.
According to Forbes, recent data from content licensing platform TollBit reveals that AI chatbots are reducing traffic to publishers' websites by a staggering 96% compared to traditional search engines. Despite promises of increased media traffic through collaborations from companies like OpenAI and Perplexity, the reality is quite different.
Image Source Note: Image generated by AI, licensed through Midjourney.
TollBit analyzed metrics from 160 news and blog publishers and found that in Q4 2024, AI company bots averaged 2 million scrapes across these sites, with an average of approximately 7 scrapes per page. This "click-jacking" significantly reduces publishers' ad revenue, as bot visits don't generate revenue for advertisers. TollBit CEO Toshit Panigrahi stated, "Each user query results in a massive bot surge hitting these websites; the demand for publishers' content is undeniable."
While AI chatbots include source links when answering questions, they simultaneously provide summaries of the scraped content, allowing users to get answers without clicking through, further diminishing publisher traffic. Educational technology company Chegg is a prime example.
Chegg recently sued Google, alleging its AI overview feature "severely" harms ad revenue. CEO Nathan Schultz admitted during an earnings call that Google uses Chegg's content to keep users on its platform, resulting in stalled traffic and plummeting profits. Chegg is considering going private or selling, and has hired Goldman Sachs for a strategic review, while also commissioning the law firm Susman Godfrey to sue Google. Partner Ian Crosby of Susman Godfrey stated that Google's AI overview "threatens the entire internet ecosystem."
This phenomenon isn't limited to Chegg; publishers are generally facing an AI-driven traffic crisis that could reshape the digital content landscape.
