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In a news published last September, it was stated that Apple was in talks with Microsoft to purchase the Bing search engine in 2020. Documents submitted to the court due to the lawsuit between Google and the US Department of Justice shed light on the background of the negotiations between the two companies.
The US Department of Justice sued Google for allegedly creating a monopoly in the search industry. According to the documents shared with the public on Friday within the scope of the case, Google argues that there is competition in the search industry. The company claims that the talks between its two rivals are proof of this.
In documents submitted to the court by Google, it is stated that Microsoft offered Apple at least seven times to make Bing the default search engine in Safari. The historical order of these offers is as follows: 2009, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2020. Google underlines that Apple rejected Microsoft’s offer due to “search quality”.
The internet giant’s statement includes the following statements: “In each case, Apple carefully examined the relative quality of Bing versus Google and concluded that Google is the superior default choice for Safari users. “This is competition.”
It is also stated in the file that Google contacted Apple to announce the improvements Microsoft made to Bing’s search quality in 2018. According to Google; Microsoft’s goal was to either “sell Bing to Apple or form a Bing-related joint venture.”
Apple did not find the quality of search investments made by Microsoft sufficient
The file also includes the statement of Eddy Cue, Apple’s director of services: “Microsoft’s search quality, their investment in search and other things were not very obvious. Everything was at a lower level. In short, the call quality was not that good. They were not investing as much as Google or at the level that Microsoft could. Their advertising organization and way of making money were not very good either.
Of course, Google and Apple have a lucrative partnership in which Google pays billions of dollars to be the default search engine on Apple platforms. According to numerous reports; Revenue from its deal with Google is a key reason why Apple’s talks to acquire Bing never progressed beyond the exploratory stages.