According to a report from Bloomberg, executives from Microsoft and Apple met in 2020 to discuss the potential sale of Bing, Microsoft’s search engine. However, the talks did not progress beyond the exploratory stage, indicating that Apple did not seriously pursue the idea. It has been revealed in the ongoing FTC antitrust suit against Google that Apple has never seriously considered replacing Google as the default search engine on iPhones. Microsoft believes that Apple has only raised the possibility as a tactic to extract more money from Google to retain its position.
The report confirms that the current lucrative arrangement between Apple and Google was a significant factor in the decision to maintain the status quo. Apple had concerns about Bing’s ability to compete with Google in terms of quality and capabilities. Apple’s executive Eddy Cue testified that there was no valid alternative to Google at the time the arrangement was made, and no equal competitor has emerged since then. It is estimated that Apple earns over $20 billion annually from the deal that secures Google as the default search engine on iOS and iPadOS.
While Bing had opportunities in the past, such as being the default for Siri and Spotlight searches, Apple never fully embraced it. Safari always kept the Google search results that customers expected. Despite discussions between Apple CEO Tim Cook and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella in 2016 regarding a potential new deal, no significant changes occurred. Apple and Google recently extended their deal in 2021, indicating that Microsoft’s pitch the year before was likely an attempt to disrupt those renewal plans.
In summary, Apple executives met with Microsoft in 2020 to explore the possibility of selling Bing, Microsoft’s search engine. Apple has never seriously considered replacing Google as the default search engine on iPhones and is believed to have raised the idea to extract more money from Google. The current arrangement between Apple and Google is lucrative, generating over $20 billion annually for Apple. Despite Bing’s past opportunities, Apple never fully embraced it, and discussions for significant changes in the default search engine never materialized. The deal between Apple and Google was recently extended in 2021.
