Apple Aims to Create a Search Engine Competitor to Google
Apple has the financial resources to launch its own search engine, potentially replacing Google, and even Microsoft has approached the company offering assistance in this endeavor.
This comes from a report by Bloomberg.
For several years, Apple has contemplated the creation of a search engine that could replace Google as the default option on its devices.
Search is one of the most widely used tools on smartphones, tablets, and computers, and Apple's modus operandi has long been centered around owning the core technologies that underpin its products. Billions of dollars are at stake here. Currently, Apple receives a portion of Google's advertising revenue from its search network, a commission that has brought in approximately $8 billion annually in recent years.
If the company successfully deploys its own search engine, it could potentially create a revenue stream comparable to that of Apple Watch, assuming it can sell advertising and search slots at the same rate as Google. Even if Apple doesn't launch a Google competitor, it can enhance its search capabilities beyond websites, which could become a "golden asset" in pricing negotiations with Google.
Apple has already created its own search systems for services such as the App Store, Maps, Apple TV, and News.
Over the past few years, a group of former Google employees has developed a next-generation search engine for Apple's programs, code-named Pegasus. This technology, which provides more precise results, is already available in some Apple apps.
A few years ago, Apple introduced a web crawler called Applebot. Similar to Google and Microsoft's crawlers, this system scans the internet to index websites for future search results.
Last week, it was reported that Microsoft attempted to divest Bing and sell it to Apple to make it the default search engine on its devices. However, Eddy Cue, Apple's Senior Vice President of Services, turned down the deal.
Cue stated that Apple sees no need to create its own search engine because Google's proposition is the best. However, if U.S. law enforcement authorities determine that Google has violated antitrust laws, the company's agreement with Apple could be terminated, costing the Services division billions of dollars.