$ 20 billion a year: Google search deal with Apple can continue

Since the current monopoly proceedings against Google, which was initiated by the US Justice Ministry, DoJ), has been afraid of losing a gigantic chunks of its employee. A good $ 20 billion a year should bring it in to the iPhone group that he has implemented Google as a standard search on iPhone, Mac or iPad in the browser. And for a long time it was questionable whether the business could be preserved. Amit P. Mehta from the United States District Court for the District of Columbia may have made relief in Cupertino on Tuesday: In an important decision, he decided that Google has to give competitors more space and has to refrain from doing certain things, but may continue to run contracts such as Apple. However, there are also changes here that may now be due.

Search engine no longer exclusive

According to Mehta, Google should remain allowed to “pay for the distribution of its products”, like that Wall Street Journal reports. Because: A ban on such contracts could overcome partners like Apple excessively. However, Google is no longer allowed to pay money to be the “exclusive” search engine on devices or in a browser. However, this is not necessarily the case either: Apple has to place so-called Choice screens in the EU, for example, so that customers can select the browser, for example. The question now is what that means for the search deal with Apple. So Google could pay a lower investment rate. But these are still speculations, the practical implementation of “non -existence” is still open.

Mehta had previously judged last year that Google had monopolized the search market for more than ten years. The judge wrote that Google had closed “illegal distribution agreements” with companies like Apple to ensure that the market share of Google search remained 90 percent. Competitors would have had no chance of developing competitive alternatives. But the orders that Mehta now issued are more committed to Google: The group does not have to sell the Chrome browser, as feared by it, but submit more search data to competitors. The Google mother Alphabet does not lose control of Android either. However, Google must not link the licensing of its Play Store on Android devices with the forced provision of other apps-such as Chrome.

AI deal with Apple could come

Google said that the judgment of Mehta recognizes that the industry has changed due to AI (search engines). The competition is “intensive”, people could “choose services that they want” very easily. Observers assume that Apple and Google could now cooperate more closely when it comes to Ki – possibly via Gemini in the operating system or at least in the browser.

It fits that a Possible purchase of anthropic by Apple Far away has moved after a new financing round had driven the evaluation (“Post-Money”) to $ 183 billion. Apple did not comment on the judgment at first. The Apple share clearly won in pre-exchangeable trade, and the plus is currently 2.82 percent.