Apple may have been paid $9.5B by Google in 2018 to stay default Safari search option
Google may have paid Apple close to $9.5 billion in 2018 to remain the default search engine in Safari, Goldman Sachs analysts said in an investor memo this week.

That would account for over 20 percent of Apple's services revenue, the memo indicated according to CNBC. Apple doesn't break down its services results, which also include money from businesses like Apple Music, iTunes, and the App Store.
Google's payments combined with Apple's cut of App Store sales made up 51 percent of 2018 services revenue, and 70 percent of gross profits, the analysts calculated.
Nevertheless, Google's share of the services segment is expected to decline. To add "mid to high single digits growth" back to services revenue, it's argued Apple will need a successful launch of a rumored subscription bundle including Apple Music, Apple News Magazines, and an unnamed video streaming service. The package should arrive in the first half of the year, possibly as soon as March or April.
Publishers are allegedly resisting Magazines however, since Apple is demanding half of subscription revenue while refusing to share as much customer data as publications are used to.
Multiple research firms have predicted that Apple will transition towards becoming more of a services company. That could prove critical to its survival -- the global smartphone industry is beginning to plateau and even decline, and Apple is still overwhelmingly dependent on the iPhone. In the December quarter iPhone revenues fell 15 percent year-over-year, and they aren't expected to resume growth until new models ship this fall.
Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty recently argued that an Apple service bundle could push the company back to a $1 trillion valuation.

That would account for over 20 percent of Apple's services revenue, the memo indicated according to CNBC. Apple doesn't break down its services results, which also include money from businesses like Apple Music, iTunes, and the App Store.
Google's payments combined with Apple's cut of App Store sales made up 51 percent of 2018 services revenue, and 70 percent of gross profits, the analysts calculated.
Nevertheless, Google's share of the services segment is expected to decline. To add "mid to high single digits growth" back to services revenue, it's argued Apple will need a successful launch of a rumored subscription bundle including Apple Music, Apple News Magazines, and an unnamed video streaming service. The package should arrive in the first half of the year, possibly as soon as March or April.
Publishers are allegedly resisting Magazines however, since Apple is demanding half of subscription revenue while refusing to share as much customer data as publications are used to.
Multiple research firms have predicted that Apple will transition towards becoming more of a services company. That could prove critical to its survival -- the global smartphone industry is beginning to plateau and even decline, and Apple is still overwhelmingly dependent on the iPhone. In the December quarter iPhone revenues fell 15 percent year-over-year, and they aren't expected to resume growth until new models ship this fall.
Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty recently argued that an Apple service bundle could push the company back to a $1 trillion valuation.
Comments
Google pays Mozilla a substantial amount of money to keep Google the default search engine in Firefox. If you’re using Firefox, you’re savvy enough to know how to change your default search engine. There is just a substantial amount of people that don’t care and will use the default.
Have you used another search engine lately? Duck Duck Go is pretty damn good.
Apple also doesn’t stop the auto play of ads (videos). The unmentioned deal that makes Google a bundle.
Yeah, don’t trust Apple. #twofaced
I know the focus is on what a shitty company FaceBook is right now, but Google is the most onerous company as far as data harvesting/collection.
People are daft to use Google search, Gmail, Docs, Maps, or any Google products.
Apple should buy DuckDuckGo. And put their money where their mouth is!
At least there should be a consensus/legislation not to track our children. No?
How about not allowing the telecoms to location track us? Or again at least don't track our kids.
Comments?
You’re high, get real. Google is still considered the better search engine, and leaving it default doesn’t negate Apple’s position on what Apple itself does with your data, which is what they advertise. You are always free to use whatever search you want. Further, with platform ad and cookie blockers now a feature (I use the excellent 1Blocker), you can take further steps to protect yourself.
Hardly. Apple doesn’t give Google your Apple ID, phone number, device ID/serial number, IMEI or anything that would identify you. In short, they get a lot of anonymous requests.
If that $9.5b is real... not sure how Apple can turn that down. Was hoping to see them go another route and ween themselves off Google but no one is turning down that amount of money.
How is it "secret"? It says explicitly on the search page "Show Google Results."
You'd be surprised how many people don't give a sh** who returns their results. At work they use Bing when Internet explorer is open. They don't think "Oh shoot this ain't Google! Let me close the window." So in theory if Apple made DDG default, they would gain 100s of millions of users overnight.
I don't doubt the number because Apple has the most valuable users in the world.
Try harder. Apple doesn't data mine users. You're not enlightening anyone on anything.
#NiceTry
What always makes me laugh is, if Google would have never betrayed Apple, they would have been more successful and wouldn't have to bleed this money. LMAO!!!!!!
Don't bite the Apple that feeds you!