In a recent development in Google’s antitrust trial, important details about the company’s deal with Apple have been revealed in court. According to Bloomberg, the tech giant pays Apple a hefty 36% cut of its search ad revenue through Safari, as part of the agreement to remain the default search engine on the web browser.
This figure was initially meant to remain confidential, and both Google and Apple have been fighting against disclosing the details of their partnership. However, during an expert’s testimony in court, a University of Chicago professor let slip the confidential number. This reportedly drew a cringe from Google’s main lawyer as both companies sought to keep this information under wraps.
The antitrust trial, which began in September after the Department of Justice sued Google in 2020 over anticompetitive practices, centers around Google’s partner deals to be the default search engine on devices. It is the most significant trial against a tech giant since the government sued Microsoft in the 1990s.
In 2021, Google reportedly paid Apple around $18 billion to remain its top search engine. This agreement, along with other default search engine deals, amounted to a significant payout of $26.3 billion to device makers. The revelation of this 36% cut of search ad revenue further sheds light on the dynamics of this high-stakes agreement between the two tech giants. Both Google and Apple have declined to comment on the matter.
I have over 10 years of experience in the cryptocurrency industry and I have been on the list of the top authors on LinkedIn for the past 5 years.