Google, Apple had a secret agreement on search business: Lawsuit

Reports say a lawsuit has been filed in the US regarding a secret agreement between Apple and Google. According to it, Apple will not be getting into the search business. But, Google’s search engine will be a priority in Apple devices.

What is Apple’s agreement with Google?

According to reports, the two tech giants have an agreement about the search business. “In exchange for Apple’s commitment not to compete in the search business in competition with Google. And, Google agreed to share its profits from the search business with Apple. In addition, to pay Apple extra billions of dollars,” alleged the lawsuit. However, the alleged class-action lawsuit does not specify the exact amount. “Apple’s devices give Google a substantial and unfair anti-competitive advantage over other search providers,” it added. They are considering Bing, Yahoo! and DuckDuckGo as their competitors.

According to the lawsuit, Apple and Google are agreeing to suppress other search websites. This is including websites that are “not favored advertisers”. It is also claiming the negotiation between “Chief Executive Officers and Chairmen” of both tech giants. “Chief Executive Officers and Chairmen of Apple and Google,” it stated. The move comes as French regulators slapped a fine worth $237 million on Facebook and Google. The French government found tech giants guilty of using cookies to track user data.

More on the lawsuit

The alleged lawsuit is also claiming that the “continued combination to eliminate competition” between the two firms was re-affirmed by Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, and Sudar Pichai, the Chairman, and CEO of Google. According to the lawsuit, this action was illegal and goes against the nation’s anti-trust laws. In addition, it is also claimed that about half of Google’s search business is through Apple devices. However, this is making Apple a major threat to the search giant if it was ever assigned as ‘Code Red’.

It also calls for “the breakup of Google into separate and independent companies and the breakup of Apple into separate and independent companies in accordance with the precedent of the breakup of Standard Oil company into Exxon, Mobile, Conoco, Amoco, Sohio, Chevron, and others”.

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