Google breaks banks every year to pay a hefty sum of $18 billion, roughly about Rs 1,500 crores, to be the default search engine in Apple’s Safari browser on Macs, iPads, and iPhones. This comes after the ongoing US vs Google trial, and several secrets have been uncovered during the trial.
As Google pays Apple every year to remain the default search engine has been a puzzle or guess game around us, with figures varying from maybe as low as $10 billion and as high as $20 billion. A report from The New York Times has emerged putting an end to all guesses: it mentions that Google paid Apple around $18 billion in 2021.
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This hefty sum of money not only puts Google in the prime position on Apple’s devices but has also prevented Apple from developing its own search engine. Former Google exec John Giannandrea who now works at Apple and oversees the AI/ML at Apple. He testified that Apple had explored various options, including acquiring Bing or creating its own search engine. However, they had concerns about both competing with Google and jeopardizing their existing agreement.
When Microsoft boss Satya Nadella testified, he suggested another rationale for Apple’s continued collaboration with Google: the potential for Google to cause disruption if the partnership were to end. Google could leverage its highly popular apps like Gmail, Maps, and YouTube to promote Chrome and the Google app, diverting users away from Safari and potentially undermining the value of Apple’s relationship with any alternative search engine.
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On the other side…
Google reportedly sought ways to compete with Apple’s Spotlight feature, even considering integrating a similar feature into Chrome. Google also explored leveraging EU competition laws to attract more users to Chrome.
Google’s portion of the trial begins on Thursday, and their argument thus far centres on their search engine’s quality, claiming that they succeed because of their superior product. Google suggests it’s easy for users to switch, but they reportedly spend $18 billion yearly to ensure they don’t.
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