Google’s competitors are pressuring EU regulators to end its default search monopoly on browsers

The news: Search engine DuckDuckGo, Ecosia, Lilo, and Qwant call on EU lawmakers to end Google’s ‘hoarding of default positions’ on web browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, and Safari browsers, by Insider.

• “Google would not have become the guardian of the market it is today without years of blocking these defaults,” rivals said in an open letter to the EU.

The details: Google’s competing search services are demanding that regulators implement rules to make it easier for browser users to configure or switch to alternative search engines.

• DuckDuckGo, Ecosia, Lilo and Qwant want alternative search engines to be easily accessible and “one click away†in browser settings. For example, changing the default search engine on Android devices takes users more than 15 clicks, through Duck
• Google reportedly paid Apple $ 15 billion to remain the default search engine on the Safari browser on Mac, iPhone and iPad in 2021, through Gadgets360. It also pays Mozilla $ 450 million a year to be the default search for the Firefox browser. through Android titles.
• Google’s Chrome Browser Controls 69% of the market and has Google search as the default search engine.

The overview: Searching is Google’s most lucrative business because it is directly linked to its ad sales business.

• The company generated $ 104 billion in “research and other†revenue in 2020, through CNBC.
• Google is also the market leader in online advertising and is on track to account for 29% of global digital advertising spend in 2021.

Why it’s worth watching: Google has shown that it is using its dominance in smartphones and browsers to boost its influence in search and ad sales, which could be seen as monopolistic by regulators.

• Google’s Android operating system has 72.45% smartphone market share; its Chrome browser has 65.13% Navigator market share, according to Statcounter.

Why this request might be successful: Armed with anti-competitive complaints from smaller search engines, EU regulators could legislate against default Google search on browsers.

• In addition, they could even argue for the separation of Google search and the Chrome browser, in the same way that regulators fought to dissociate Microsoft’s Internet Explorer browser from the Windows operating system during the case. antitrust 2001.