Google is paying Apple 36 percent of all ad revenue coming in through searches from the Safari browser. This is to ensure that Google Search remains the default search engine within that browser. That percentage is up to three times what the tech giant pays to manufacturers of devices with an Android operating system.
The U.S. government’s recent lawsuit against Google over market dominance of its search functionality continues to yield interesting details.
Recently, a witness stated that the tech giant pays competitor Apple as much as 36 percent of its ad revenue from the Safari browser. This was later confirmed by Google CEO Sundar Pichai.
With this, the tech giant wants to ensure that the Google search engine remains the default option within the Apple browser.
Three times the Android rate
Another competition law case shows that this percentage is as much as three times higher than the share of ad revenue that the tech giant pays to those that have adopted Google’s own operating system Android. The latter percentage is about 12 percent.
According to experts, the amount of ad revenue to secure the search engine as the OS default depends on the company the tech giant negotiates with. Apple is a major potential competitor for Google, which itself can offer alternative services. By paying more, it allows Google to keep a company like Apple more friendly.
Since Android phone manufacturers are already within the Google ecosystem, the tech giant has a stronger bargaining position.
Deals with smartphone manufacturers
Google also has several other agreements with manufacturers to agree on how “Google-like” a particular device is. Such deals exist with Motorola, LG and HMD, among others, as well as Xiaomi, Sony, Sharp and OnePlus, Oppo, and Vivo manufacturer BBK.
Samsung allegedly received money from Google only to ensure that Google Play is the permanent app store on Samsung devices.
Also read: Privacy features Google also hard to understand for own CEO
2 days ago
