SerpApi is asking a federal court to dismiss Reddit’s lawsuit over alleged scraping of Reddit content from Google Search, saying Reddit is trying to use copyright law to control user posts and public search results.
- The motion follows Reddit’s amended complaint filed in February.
- SerpApi says the filing still fails to show copyright ownership, circumvention of technical protections, or concrete harm.
SerpApi’s argument. SerpApi CEO Julien Khaleghy, in a blog post today, argued the lawsuit fails for several reasons:
- Reddit doesn’t own most of the content at issue. Its user agreement states that users retain ownership.
- Reddit holds only a non-exclusive license to user posts.
- The snippets cited in the complaint (e.g., dates, addresses, short fragments) aren’t copyrightable.
- SerpApi accessed Google Search pages, not Reddit itself.
DMCA. Khaleghy said Reddit claims SerpApi violated the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) by circumventing technical protections. SerpApi disputes that claim, saying it retrieves the same search results visible to anyone who enters a query in Google. Khaleghy argued that:
- SerpApi doesn’t break encryption or bypass authentication.
- Accessing public webpages isn’t “circumvention” under the DMCA.
- Reddit is trying to enforce copyright protections it doesn’t own.
- Reddit’s privacy policy states that public posts may appear in search results.
Catch up quick. Legal fights over search scraping and AI data have intensified in recent months:
Why we care. The case tests whether companies can extract information from Google’s search results without violating copyright or the DMCA. The outcome could affect SEO tools and AI training data.
What’s next. The court must decide whether Reddit’s amended complaint can proceed. If the judge dismisses the case with prejudice, Reddit’s claims against SerpApi in this lawsuit would end.
SerpApi’s blog post. Reddit’s Lawsuit is a Dangerous Attempt to Expand Platform Power
Search Engine Land is owned by Semrush. We remain committed to providing high-quality coverage of marketing topics. Unless otherwise noted, this page’s content was written by either an employee or a paid contractor of Semrush Inc.
