Apple had its eyes on Bing in 2020. According to a recent Bloomberg report, in 2020, Microsoft was in talks with Apple regarding the potential sale of Bing. The objective of these talks was to explore the possibility of replacing Google as the default search engine on Apple’s platforms with Bing.
To provide context, between 2013 and 2017, Apple had a prior agreement with Microsoft that involved using Bing to power Siri and Spotlight search results. In 2016, Microsoft wanted to expand the partnership with Apple by making Bing the default search engine on Safari for iPhone, iPad and Mac.
During this period, Apple was also negotiating with Google to renew their longstanding agreement, where Google paid Apple a portion of ad revenue from searches on Apple devices.
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Ultimately, in 2016, Apple chose to renew and expand its partnership with Google, covering not only traditional searches but also those conducted through Siri and Spotlight. This decision effectively ended the collaboration between Apple and Microsoft.
However, in 2020, fresh discussions took place between Microsoft and Apple. Bloomberg reports that Microsoft executives held exploratory talks with Apple’s Services VP Eddy Cue about the potential acquisition of Bing. These talks, however, could never fructify.
One of the primary reasons these talks did not advance further was the substantial revenue Apple generated from its partnership with Google. “The company also had concerns about Bing’s ability to compete with Google in quality and capabilities.”
With Bloomberg inputs
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