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As more details about Google’s recent court hearing are coming out, we’re getting to know the tech firms’ strategies and policies better. The latest news from the court alleges that Google shares a part of its search revenue with Android OEMs. The company uses money to push OEMs toward releasing more security patches to their devices.
Google’s court hearing over its litigation with the US Justice Department was recently held to discuss the company’s monopoly in the search market. In response to allegations, CEO Sundar Pichai said Google had done nothing wrong, and all business tactics are legitimate.
Google gives money to Android OEMs for device maintenance
As a part of the hearing, Google CEO revealed the amount of money they pay to be the default search engine on different platforms, including Apple Safari. Google paid roughly $26.3 billion in 2021 alone, and around $20 billion goes to Apple. Most of the lawsuit was focused on Google’s payments to various companies. However, the CEO says the deals aren’t just about money.
Pichai added the company uses a rev-share structure to encourage OEMs to promote their devices and release security patches. He noted, for some Google partners, “more effort goes into developing the next version, and updates are costly… so sometimes they make tradeoffs.” Pichai confirms the brands that release security patches get a revenue share from Google.
Google is the default search engine on almost all Android devices and apps like Chrome. Jim Kolotouros, Google’s VP of Android Platform Partnerships, allegedly said in a series of internal emails that Chrome exists to serve Google search. In addition, Google pays over $20 billion a year to Apple to stay on Safari browser.
Meanwhile, Google is facing a similar antitrust case in Japan. The Japan Fair Trade Commission questioned Google’s decision to set the search app and Chrome browser default on Android smartphones. The Japan watchdog added that Google has signed agreements with companies to guarantee a special place for its apps on the phone’s screen. In return, Google allows those companies to access the Play Store.