Apple and Microsoft in Discussions to Oust Google, Make Bing Default iPhone Search Engine
Business Insider is reporting that, given Google’s new rise to smartphone rival, Apple is now in talks with previous-generation frenemy Microsoft to replace the iPhone’s default search engine with Bing.
“Apple and Google know the other is their primary enemy,” says one of the people, who’s familiar with Apple’s thinking. “Microsoft is now a pawn in that battle.” Apple is also working on ways to manage ad placement on its mobile devices, a move that would encroach on Google’s ad-serving business, the person says.
The iPhone is a monster on the mobile internet, and default search engine status is worth monstrous amounts of cash to those who get to serve ads along with the results. But let’s slow down a moment here…
First, they’re basing this on the usual anonymous sources which could be right, wrong, or trying to manipulate the Apple/Google/Microsoft situation by “leaking” this. Hey, we’ve seen that happen when Apple negotiates with carriers. Second, Business Week further states the deal could still fly apart, or could take a long time to be reached. Third, right now Google is the default search engine on the iPhone but users can still switch to Yahoo!, so if Bing gets added to that list, even if it becomes the default, presumably users could still switch to Google (or Yahoo!… or is that already Bing?). And then there’s the nu-cu-lar option:
The person familiar with Apple’s thinking says Apple has a “skunk works” looking at a search offering of its own, and believes that “if Apple does do a search deal with Microsoft, it’s about buying itself time.” Given the importance of search and its tie to mobile advertising—and the iPhone maker’s desire to slow Google—”Apple isn’t going to outsource the future.”
Likely why they wanted to buy AdMob and ended up buying Quattro Wireless, and why Steve Jobs wants to get involved with mobile advertising.
What would happen to other Google-powered service apps like Maps isn’t discussed (though Apple has bought PlaceBase for map data layering). However, this just further shows what TiPb has been saying for a while now — Apple believes the UI is the application for the user, and controlling the UI means they can swap out the pipes in the background (swap out Google Search, swap in Bing Search) without much problem (as long as the new pipe produces good, visually non-jarring results). When a huge competitor like Google tries to control the interface, like with a Google Voice app, then Apple has a problem because they can’t swap Google out with Microsoft Voice (or whatever), but a user can ditch the iPhone hardware for an Android device and be perfectly familiar with that UI front end.
January 20th, 2010 at 9:10 am
Don’t do it!!
January 20th, 2010 at 9:17 am
NEVER!!!!!!!!! Bing is the worst!!! I hate it and would never use anything on my wonderful iPhone that has to do with Microsoft, I don’t want my phone crashing all the time…
January 20th, 2010 at 9:21 am
Does Apple really hate Google then?
January 20th, 2010 at 9:24 am
Shouldn’t this title read ‘Apple in talks with Microsoft to ruin user experience.’ Bing=fuh-ail
January 20th, 2010 at 9:26 am
Google sucks. Good riddance.
January 20th, 2010 at 9:27 am
No matter how much Apple hate Google, they hate Microsoft more. I believe this story one bit.
January 20th, 2010 at 9:28 am
Oh god, the horror. I seriously hope they don’t do this. I really hope apple stops their vendetta with google. I know they are competitors, but are they REALLY thinking of going to MICROSOFT? How aweful. LIke the other comments above, bing sucks. Sorry, but it’s a epic fail. The results are just horrible. I think the best thing apple could do is to keep google on board as much as possible. I think buying placebase was a waste of money as well as the admob thing. I mean if Apple hates Google so much, then why is Apple trying so hard to become them?
January 20th, 2010 at 9:35 am
While Google search results seem better, Bing has a better interface on the iPhone in my opinion. Google is also turning out to be pretty hostile, so I can see a need to keep their options open.
January 20th, 2010 at 9:35 am
Google is far better and more iPhone users use Gmail. I don’t like to hear about Bing taken it over. I say a servey is in request from iPhone users before any real move is made. Thanks, Chris Floyd
January 20th, 2010 at 9:36 am
Ha! Never… @Fastlane, are you serious? Have you not learned to use boolean operators in google?
January 20th, 2010 at 9:43 am
@Dryland:
I like AdWords. That’s all they’re good for, in my opinion.
January 20th, 2010 at 9:47 am
@Dryland: He probably doesn’t know what that is. He doesn’t seem too technical. More like a push this button flip this switch because the picture told me so kind of guy.
January 20th, 2010 at 9:49 am
@Christopher Cox:
I’m a veteran web developer. My opinion is my opinion, Jr.
Have a great day.
January 20th, 2010 at 10:00 am
IMHO, I’d go with neither. Apple has $34 Billion in cash and doesn’t need a deal with either to generate revenue (which by the way we never see even though we’re the ones doing the searches). With that cash hoard Apple could simply buy another search engine, like Cuil whose founders came from Google, and tailor the search experience to one that is more in line with Apple’s way of doing things not Google’s or Microsoft’s. Then they’re vertically integrated and can offer iPhone customers more than they could with Bing/Yahoo! or Google as primary search engines.
January 20th, 2010 at 10:17 am
Ugh.
Just, ugh.
January 20th, 2010 at 10:27 am
@fastlane:
I’m a veteran web surfer and veteran iPhone user. I use Google to find my information. You can design websites any way you like but I will neither be surfing to your website nor buying one from you if it does not appear in Google search results in any way, shape, or form, because I’ll never be able to find it. Also your opinion is your opinion and you have a right to it, but that also doesn’t make it valid… implying that Google sucks compared to Bing is ludicrous. If that’s not what you are trying to say, then please clarify, because that’s what it seems like you are saying.
I will also switch to Android faster than Ballmer can throw a chair if Bing becomes the default search engine on the iPhone. Google works for me, and Bing does not. Bing has a little mindshare only because they offer people “points” to get free **** if people use it.
January 20th, 2010 at 10:34 am
As long as Google remains a user chooseable option, even if it not the default then whats the problem?
January 20th, 2010 at 10:39 am
I really like the bing app. The interface is very nice and better than the google app.
January 20th, 2010 at 11:08 am
Google, Bing, it doesn’t matter as long as my search query returns the right result.
January 20th, 2010 at 11:21 am
Can someone find on Bing all the same illegal copyrighted stuff someone can find on Google?
A “friend” needs to know for some reason and says that this would help him decide how this switch may or may not affect him or her.
January 20th, 2010 at 11:48 am
Kids can’t we all get along? At the end of the day ppl can state they will leave all they want but they never will. The iPhone is too far ahead of any other phone out there so why would you take a step backward?
January 20th, 2010 at 12:11 pm
“Apple is also working on ways to manage ad placement on its mobile devices” So you pay *** dollars for the phone, then xx per month to have a service.. and get ads thrown at you?.. you want to throw ads, cut the service price or the price of the phone, or BOTH.. otherwise, not interested.
January 20th, 2010 at 12:32 pm
Just did a google search and bing search for iPhone 4G using the google app and the bing app. Bing returned less than desirable results. Google returned results for posts from 6 hours ago and days ago, some of the first results bing returned were from last year.
Interesting.
January 20th, 2010 at 12:42 pm
If I have to “bing” for information, I will smash my iPhone, it’s a year and a half old now, I love it, but ousting Google will make me irate.
It’s time I got a new phone anyways.
January 20th, 2010 at 12:50 pm
Doubtful as I can’t even change search providers for Safari 4, except for Google and Yahoo.
January 20th, 2010 at 12:52 pm
I hate how Apple would rather give in to their selfish desires and boycot Google rather than keep something that 90% of users use and enjoy. Sure this is just a rumor, but it is just like Apple to do something like this, so I completely believe this article.
January 20th, 2010 at 2:02 pm
I know I hate all the google ads I have on my iPhone!!!!!!!! Stupid google ads
January 20th, 2010 at 2:03 pm
But nooo keep google
January 20th, 2010 at 2:20 pm
Google would remain an option on the iPhone’s “Safari” settings page. Right now there are two options: Google and Yahoo! Guess which one is the default.
Adding Bing wouldn’t remove Google, according to all the reports. It would just become the default. It takes 5 seconds to change.
But, looking at the bigger picture, making Bing the default Safari search engine would undercut all the Mac vs. PC ads. This would work against all the switcher ads, so it makes no sense for Apple to do.
January 20th, 2010 at 2:37 pm
Google is the “default” search engine for mobile safari at the moment, but it’s not the only one available. If you go into the settings, you can currently switch it out for yahoo, although I don’t know anyone who has. Interesting that nobody has pointed that out yet.
Point being, I wouldn’t imagine Apple is so stupid that they’d cut google off permanently. Instead, I would think they would add bing to the choices, and possibly make it the default, knowing that most people don’t switch. Of course all you savvy developers who are trash talking in the comments would switch it back to google, because you were already aware that that was possible, right?
January 20th, 2010 at 2:50 pm
I’ve posted something and found it searchable on google within a half hour. I’ve never used Bing. So I can’t really comment on this. Apple may look like they hate Micro$oft more than google but we always tend to forget Micro$oft bailing Apple out of certain failure not 10 years ago. Micro$oft supporting Office for Apple and agreeing to pay Apple millions kept Apple alive. Steve won’t forget that so easy.
January 20th, 2010 at 4:28 pm
Who would have thought there was such passion around a default search engine? From a pure business point of view, I can see why Apple would be looking to jettison any dependence on Google. I’m not sure Bing is a great replacement, however. Once again I find I agree with the Reptile; a third and/or homegrown choice would be Apple’s most logical move, assuming there’s any basis to this rumor.
January 20th, 2010 at 4:52 pm
I find it hilarious all the talk about, “oh because of this, or if they do that then I’m gone, I’ll leave the iPhone.”
No you won’t. I call it a Crackphone for a reason.;)
January 20th, 2010 at 5:09 pm
Apple should buy exalead.com and customize it with the Apple UI experience
January 20th, 2010 at 5:11 pm
sorry http://www.exalead.com/search/
January 20th, 2010 at 6:33 pm
I would love to see stats, but the majority of IE users have google as their default search. I was not impressed with bing. Google is here to stay.
January 20th, 2010 at 7:36 pm
not going to happen.
why would apple put itself in exactly the same problem position with MS as they were in before with Google?
especially when they are sitting on a mountain of cash?
they’ll acquire a search engine like cuil, or buy yahoo, or built their own solution before they’d ever partner with microsoft.
January 20th, 2010 at 8:56 pm
Oh the good ol days of Lycos. Where are ye you faithful dog? Come back to me. Lol.
January 21st, 2010 at 1:16 am
Well replacing google is not an easy task because people love to search things on google because many options are added in google for relevant searching.
January 21st, 2010 at 1:22 am
I hope this is just an analyst’s wet dream because search results are king and Google is certainly the Emperor. For example, fired up Safari and went to bing.com. Searched for Pizza and included my zip code (pizza 90201). First result was placed by yellow pages fro Primo’s Towing. Huh, a towing company when searching pizza? Same search results on Google had it spot on. (Bing.com’s presentation of the results are better organized on a mobile device, though.)
January 21st, 2010 at 2:31 am
Before I start I’ll say I realize google will still be an option. Having said that, WTF is up with Bing dude? I used both the google and bing app to do a pizza search with just “Pizza & zip.” Google was spot on. Bing showed me two ads first and the pizza spot literally around the corner from me was not listed at ALL.
So…who the hell is gonna use Bing if they can’t get decent results?! I wonder if my business shows up in Bing…
January 22nd, 2010 at 12:32 am
If this is true. Apple playing this game of trying to stick it to Google. The only people that are going to get hurt is us. And eventually Apple will be paying the price as people will start to leave to go to another platform. No one wants to hang around the bully. Apple stop trying to flex your muscles you have a great product just keep it that way.
March 11th, 2010 at 4:22 am
iPhone App Market is really getting popular just after the releasing of iPhone 3G and now iPad have also potential to stay in and interact with iPhone developers. Which i think is really an amazing changed. Thanks