AI overviews cut 40% of clicks

What’s New in Publishing said AI-generated overview pages are cutting publisher clicks by about 40% on some stories, adding to evidence that referral traffic is shifting away from original reporting and toward platform summaries. The report pointed to Apple News, MSN and NewsBreak as examples of distribution channels where summarized presentation can absorb reader attention before a user reaches a publisher’s site. The piece framed the problem as a traffic and product challenge for publishers that still rely on outside platforms for discovery. Other industry research has also found that AI-generated answer layers are reducing click-through rates and increasing zero-click behavior. ### Where is the 40% figure coming from? What’s New in Publishing attributed the 40% figure to the effect of AI overview pages on certain stories, describing a pattern in which platform-generated summaries capture the first read and leave fewer users clicking through to the originating publisher. The report grouped that change with broader publisher concerns about traffic quality and shrinking referral volumes from third-party surfaces. (whatsnewinpublishing.substack.com) Search Engine Journal, citing multiple publisher and research findings, said Google’s AI Overviews have been associated with steep declines in click-through rates, including worst-case drops of nearly 90% for some searches and broader evidence of lower traffic across informational queries. The article also said zero-click searches now account for 69% of all queries, citing Similarweb. (whatsnewinpublishing.substack.com) ### Why do summaries reduce clicks in the first place? AI overview products answer the user’s question on the platform page itself. The Current said that model is changing the old exchange in which publishers produced content, platforms indexed it, and readers clicked through to publisher sites where ads and subscriptions could be monetized. (searchenginejournal.com) The Current reported that traffic to the world’s 500 most visited publishers had fallen 27% year over year since February 2024, based on Similarweb data it cited, while AI chatbots generated only a much smaller increase in referrals. The outlet also cited Enders Analysis as saying AI overviews were “cannibalizing website visits.” (thecurrent.com) ### Why are Apple News, MSN and NewsBreak part of this story? What’s New in Publishing used Apple News, MSN and NewsBreak to show that the issue is not limited to search engines. On those platforms, the summary, card or rewritten overview can become the main product the user consumes, reducing the value of the original article as a destination page. (thecurrent.com) That matters because many publishers built audience strategies around syndicated reach and referral traffic from aggregators. When those surfaces keep the user longer, the publisher may still be visible but loses pageviews, ad impressions and the chance to convert a casual reader into a direct visitor or subscriber. That reading is consistent with broader industry reporting on clickless search and declining referral traffic. (whatsnewinpublishing.substack.com) ### Which publishers are most exposed? Search-dependent publishers are the most exposed, especially those built around explainers, evergreen service content and commodity news that can be summarized quickly. Search Engine Journal said search often accounts for 20% to 40% of referral traffic for major publishers, making even modest click losses meaningful to revenue. (whatsnewinpublishing.substack.com) Niche publishers face a sharper version of the same problem. A local or specialist outlet may own the reporting, but if a platform gives users the gist in one screen, the publisher loses the visit unless it has a habit-based product the reader seeks out directly. That dynamic is the one What’s New in Publishing highlighted in its discussion of direct audience products. (searchenginejournal.com) ### How are publishers responding? What’s New in Publishing said publishers are leaning harder on products they control, including newsletters, score hubs and push alerts. Those formats are designed to create repeat visits without relying on a platform to send traffic back. (whatsnewinpublishing.substack.com) The Current reported that publishers are also reassessing how they monetize content as AI search features and chat-based discovery tools expand. That response is less about one platform and more about reducing dependence on any referral source that can summarize the work without delivering the reader. (whatsnewinpublishing.substack.com) ### What should readers watch next? Google rolled out AI Overviews to all U.S. users in May 2024, Search Engine Journal said, and publishers are still measuring the effect across different content types. What’s New in Publishing’s report suggests the next visible test will be whether direct products such as newsletters, alerts and recurring utility pages can replace some of the lost platform traffic. (thecurrent.com) (searchenginejournal.com)