The exact amount of money that Google pays Apple remains unclear, but estimates suggest it could be in the tens of billions of dollars. In 2021, Google reportedly paid Apple approximately $18 billion for the deal. The trial also revealed that Google paid $26 billion in total for default contracts. If the DOJ proves that these deals ensure Google's illegal monopoly in general search markets, Google could be ordered to break up its search business, impacting not only Google but also its partners like Apple. The judge is not expected to issue a ruling until 2024.
Key takeaways:
- Google pays Apple 36% of its search advertising revenue from Safari to keep its search engine as the default in Apple's browser, a detail that was accidentally revealed during the Department of Justice's monopoly trial examining Google's search business.
- The Department of Justice is arguing that Google maintains an illegal monopoly over search by paying large amounts for default search deals to block out competitors and lock users into its services.
- Estimates suggest that Apple likely gets paid in the tens of billions of dollars for Google's default Safari placements, with Google's global ad revenue expected to reach nearly $340 billion by 2027.
- If the Department of Justice proves that Google maintains an illegal monopoly, Google could be ordered to break up its search business, impacting not just Google's bottom line but also its partners, like Apple.