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Britannica and Merriam-Webster’s Lawsuit Against Perplexity: What the Case Says

By Freedom251 Team · · 2 min read

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Encyclopaedia Britannica and Merriam-Webster sued Perplexity AI in federal court in New York on September 10, 2025, alleging copyright and trademark infringement tied to Perplexity’s answer-engine service. The claims remain allegations: the latest substantive order reviewed, dated September 2, 2026, addressed discovery materials and hosting costs—not whether infringement occurred. The docket should be checked for developments after the September 8, 2026 conference date before relying on this status.

Why are Britannica and Merriam-Webster suing Perplexity?

The two publishers’ complaint alleges that Perplexity’s answer-engine service uses and presents their content and brands in ways that infringe copyright and trademark rights. Britannica’s September 10, 2025 announcement described the suit as raising those claims. The complaint and announcement explain the plaintiffs’ position; neither establishes that Perplexity violated the law.

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Britannica Group CEO Jorge Cauz characterized the dispute this way in the company’s announcement: “Perplexity claims to be the ‘world’s first answer engine’ but the answers they provide to consumers are often Britannica’s answers.” That is the plaintiff’s characterization, not a court finding. The reviewed sources do not establish a specific Perplexity response to these allegations.

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What is the case, and where was it filed?

Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. and Merriam-Webster, Inc. filed the case against Perplexity AI, Inc. in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on September 10, 2025. Its case number is 1:25-cv-07546. The plaintiffs assert copyright and trademark infringement claims; the factual assertions and legal characterizations in their complaint are disputed allegations.

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What has happened in court?

Motion to dismiss

Perplexity filed a motion to dismiss on November 3, 2025, and filed a reply on December 15, 2025. A case-management order followed on December 17. The docket materials reviewed do not establish the motion’s ultimate disposition.

September 2026 discovery order

On September 2, 2026, the court granted part and denied part of the plaintiffs’ discovery request. The order required Perplexity to provide one additional retrieval-augmented-generation (RAG) snapshot, with the parties to agree on the relevant date or period. It also required Perplexity to host six months of user activity log data covering August 2025 through January 2026. The plaintiffs must contribute up to $6,000 per month toward hosting those data.

This order concerns evidence gathering and allocation of hosting costs. It does not decide whether Perplexity infringed copyright or trademark rights, and it does not establish liability, damages, or a settlement.

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Scheduled conference and status limits

An August 26, 2026 order scheduled a further discovery-status conference for September 8, 2026. The available court materials do not establish what happened at that conference or whether later orders have issued. The procedural status described here is limited to orders and docket information available through September 28, 2026; consult the court docket for subsequent activity.

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Has the court decided the Britannica–Perplexity case?

The reviewed materials do not show a final merits judgment or a decision establishing infringement. The September 2 discovery order is not a ruling on the underlying claims. The docket information reviewed also does not establish the final disposition of Perplexity’s motion to dismiss. Accordingly, the case’s ultimate outcome cannot be stated from these materials.

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