Search deal: Apple warns of possible loss of Google billions
For almost 20 years, Apple has been receiving money from Google to make the internet giant the main search engine in Safari. Now the business model is at risk.
person uses Google search on an iPhone.
(Image: DenPhotos/Shutterstock)
Apple has warned analysts that the many billions of US dollars that the iPhone company currently receives from Google for its integration as the main search engine in Safari could be lost in the future. The new CFO Kevan Parekh said on the sidelines of the conference call on the latest Apple quarterly figures at the end of last week that Apple's quarterly forecast only applies if "the current revenue-sharing agreement with Google" continues.
Fear for the services business
Parekh hinted that the deal could end in the current quarter –, referring to the current action by the US Department of Justice against Google, which Apple claims could cause "irreparable damage" in the proceedings. The company is currently set to receive 20 billion dollars for Google's placement in Safari (not only on the iPhone, but also on Mac and iPad). Apple recently announced that it was seeing fewer Google queries due to the increasing use of AI search engines. Google , however, sees things very differently.
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In his briefing to analysts, Parekh said that the outlook for the current quarter did not take into account any changes in the customs regime or negative changes in macroeconomic conditions. Furthermore, as mentioned, it is assumed that the deal with Google will remain in place. The question now is what would happen if this is not the case – Apple's services business, which recently posted another record result (27.4 billion dollars), would slump significantly.
Alternative: AI search instead of Google
Apple itself is looking for alternatives both internally and externally. For example, there is said to be a project to build its own "answer engine", as well as talks with the AI search provider Perplexity. Apple can also imagine spending a lot of money on the purchase of an AI company.
However, all these measures are unlikely to ensure that the Google money is even remotely balanced out, and above all quickly. Back in August 2024, a US federal judge ruled that the agreement between Google and Apple violates US antitrust law. However, it has not yet been determined what this means in concrete terms. Google is also likely to respond immediately with an appeal. Apple CEO Tim Cook said during the analyst call that he did not want to speculate on the outcome of the ruling and what Apple would then do as a consequence.
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