World Courant
Vice chairman Prabhakar Raghavan testified Friday that Google paid $26.3 billion in 2021 for the aim of sustaining default search engine standing and buying site visitors, Bloomberg experiences. It is possible the lion’s share of that sum went to Apple, which it has showered with exorbitant sums for a few years in an effort to stay the default search choice on iPhone, iPad and Mac.
Raghavan, who was testifying as a part of the DOJ’s ongoing antitrust go well with towards the corporate, stated Google’s search promoting made $146.4 billion in income in 2021, which places the $26 billion it paid for default standing in perspective. The chief clarified that default standing was the costliest a part of what it pays to accumulate site visitors.
Raghavan didn’t point out how a lot of the $26.3 billion went to Apple. However CNBC experiences that an estimate from personal wealth administration agency Bernstein ballparked that Google may pay Apple as much as $19 billion this yr for the default privilege.
A slide proven in court docket revealed that, in 2014, Google introduced in $47 billion in search income whereas paying $7.1 billion for default standing. Raghavan testified that Google’s total default search engine funds almost quadrupled from 2014 to 2021, whereas its search promoting income (roughly) tripled.
Google objected to creating the figures public, arguing it will damage its potential to barter future contracts. Choose Amit Mehta, overseeing the case, disagreed.
