To be fair Android OEMs are using Android, you know, Google’s mobile OS. They are paying Apple a premium because they own their own OS and have significant market share.
How is that to be fair?
Any Android phone maker, can decide the default search engine just as well as Apple.
Google tried to force Google search on Android, but that was prevented by EU.
I wasn’t aware Android phone makers could choose the default search engine. Is that true across the globe or only in the EU? Also if you look at global market share of smartphone manufacturers, only Samsung is competitive with Apple. Samsung is closest to Apple in the US market too, but it isn’t really close.
The other piece of info we don’t have is did Apple have fat offer letters from other search engines or was Apple serious about making their own search engine, thus another competitor to Google’s core business and their ad revenue stream.
Is that true across the globe
I don’t know for sure, but I think if Google continued the practice outside EU, EU would still call it anti competitive behavior. So yes I’m pretty sure it’s across the globe.
You are absolutely right that size is a factor, and in that regard only Samsung is comparable to Apple. I’m not aware if Apple has aired an interest in making their own search, obviously they could do that, and probably be more successful than Microsoft Bing very quickly. But it could also damage their market share, if they got an reputation of not delivering similar quality search results to Google. So it would be a somewhat dangerous game to play for Apple.
We know Firefox lost their support from Google almost entirely when Chrome became dominant. Personally I use Firefox, and for search Qwant on my desktop, and Duckduckgo on my phone.
