What Did Google Do This Week? - 05-05-24 [+50 LINKS]
Not a fun week to be a Googler; monopoly accusations come to a crescendo in court, yet more firings, job outsourcing, and a possible new competitor are all threatening harmony at the Googleplex…
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IS GOOGLE A MONOPOLY…OR JUST ‘BETTER’?
Judge Amit P. Mehta presided over the closing arguments in the high-stakes antitrust battle against Google this week, a trial which will have major implications for the tech industry. The US Justice Department alleges that Google has unlawfully monopolised online search. Google, no surprise, denies this.
Prosecutors argue that Google's dominance has harmed the quality of online search for users. Google's defence, meanwhile, is essentially that the company is not a monopoly because consumers have alternative options like Amazon and TikTok. Google's lead litigator, John E. Schmidtlein, summed up their stance succinctly, stating, "Google is winning because it's better."
At the crux of the case is the revelation that Google’s parent company Alphabet paid Apple a whopping $20 billion in 2022 to make Google the default search engine on Apple’s Safari web browser. A Google witness also revealed (accidentally) that Google pays a significant portion of its search ad revenue — around 36% — to Apple. Both sides expect a decision within months.
Meanwhile, Google found itself in other negative stories and headlines thanks to laying off +200 employees from its Core teams just before announcing strong first-quarter earnings. The restructuring involves shifting some roles to India and Mexico - not a great look. The Core unit, responsible for building flagship products and ensuring user safety online, faces significant changes amid Google's ongoing evolution. The move followed further illegal firing revelations from the +50 employees that Google fired last week for protesting against the company’s deal with Israel. Google just can’t catch a break right now, and Meta and pals are fine with landing Google in the spotlight right when they want them off their game.
SO WHAT?
Google has been the largest internet search engine for decades. The trial is probably the biggest in the tech industry since the US government filed a similar suit against Microsoft in 1999, although it should be noted that there are further antitrust trials to come against Amazon, Apple and Meta (as well as another one against Google for online advertising). All of this is huge for tech, as the US government attempts to rein in the power of these giants and promote competition in the industry. Time will tell if this Judge wants to leave a legacy or this will simply be another brush with regulatory scrutiny that Silicon Valle shrugs off.
Search isn’t over, but the landscape is drastically changing thanks to AI and changing consumer habits. Look out this week on the 9th for possible news around OpenAI who may be launching a search engine according to the Twitter rumour mill. Depending on what is launched (if anything - remember rumour), all bets could be off and Google’s stock could be in for a bumpy ride.
Lots of questions remain, but a big one that swirls round our heads is would the world use Google if the company didn’t pay for it to be default search engine on the world’s most popular smartphone brand? We may not be about to find out in a few weeks or months, but that’s going to be a question a lot of stakeholders are asking themselves along with what happens if the gravy train stops running.
Among the biggest takeaways from the trial so far is the $20 billion Google paid to Apple in 2022, to persuade the iPhone manufacturer to make Google its default search engine on Safari. This is coupled with the revelation that Google pays Apple more than a third of its search ad revenue. With this unfolding while both Google and Apple are at loggerheads with the US government, two of big tech’s top competitors start to look more like allies in a fight against state power.
The outcome of all this? An unfocused and off its game Google. From people to political optics, the next quarter is critical for Google as they set their agenda for the next 12 months (possibly longer) at Google I/O on May 14th. The good ship Google needs to stop splashing about in choppy seas and make some actual headway to calmer waters. I/O may not do it alone, but it’s a chance for Google to say some things to a global audience and media on-site. Expect big words…and possibly deeds now the early leaks are out the way.
As for this week, if OpenAI does launch a search engine, expect a very bad week of headlines and stock numbers for Google, right when they don’t need any more bad news, or a competitor, for one of their main revenue sources.
Google denied shoring up a monopoly in online search in landmark antitrust case. /NYT
Google laid off at least 200 employees from its ‘Core’ organisation. /CNBC
Google paid Apple $20 billion to be Safari’s default search engine. /Bloomberg
Google had +50 ex-employees claim unlawful dismissal. /The Verge
Google fired its entire Python programming language team. /Free Press Journal
Google pushed back against Epic Games demands for the Google Play Store. /TechCrunch
Google CEO Sundar Pichai is nearly a billionaire, thanks to AI boom. /Bloomberg
Apple has poached at least 36 AI experts from Google since 2018. /FT
Some US artists have sued Google over its AI image generator. /Reuters
Google's Privacy Sandbox advertising toolkit was questioned by a UK watchdog. /The Register
Google Search’s market share dropped to 86.99% (down slightly yoy). /SEJ
Google asked advertisers to ‘rethink programmatic TV’ for streaming. /DigiDay
Google Search told advertisers it will begin pausing low-activity keywords. /SEJ
Google announced the company will roll out “audio emoji”. /9to5Google
Google announced the company will roll out Gemini AI for old Android phones. /Forbes
Google suffered a leak on Pixel 8a pricing (will retail at $499). /Forbes
Google unveiled its first arm-based CPU, designed for data centres. /InfoQ
Google’s Home app leaked two new Nest devices this week. /9to5Google
Multiple Android apps were found to have a security risk by Microsoft. /Forbes
Google agreed to pay News Corp $5-6 million per year for AI-related content. /Reuters
Google announced that 400 million people have used passkeys since the rollout. /The Verge
Google released a ‘critical’ security fix for Microsoft Chrome users. /Forbes
Google announced the company rejected over 2 million Android apps from the Play Store in 2023. /Google Security Blog
Google suffered a leak about the camera on the Pixel 8a. /Forbes
Google Chrome rolled out a Gemini AI address bar shortcut. /9to5Google
Google announced the company is testing a one-tap video enhancement tool for Google Photos. /Forbes
Google Photos is testing a tool to let users remove unwanted faces from the Memories tab. /Forbes
Google Search started labelling some of its knowledge panels with an aI disclaimer. /SERoundtable
Google rolled out labels in the Play Store denoting official government apps. /TechCrunch
Google announced plans to introduce ‘selfie GIFs’ to Google Messages. /9to5Google
Google Wallets tweaked Android ‘payment methods’. /9to5Google
Google services suffered an outage that affected maps, Classroom, Earth. /MSN
Google updated its ad policy to ban the promotion of services that generate, distribute, or store synthetic sexually explicit content, starting May 30, 2024. /SEO Roundtable
Google asked the US Department of Labor to modernise its immigration policy to avoid losing out on AI talent. /The Verge
Google revealed the Google I/O 2024 program lineup. /Google Blog
Google confirmed it will carry blood samples between NHS hospitals. /Telegraph
Google opened applications for its $10 million Ukraine startups fund. /Google Blog
Google confirmed it will attend the AI Safety Summit in Korea. /PYMNTS
Google announced the winners of its single-use plastics challenge. /Google Blog
Google unveiled its Mental Health Awareness Month plans. /Google Blog
Google Search paid tribute to ‘Drag Race’ winner Nymphia Wind. /Yahoo
Google had a story regarding independent publishers being gradually bumped out of Google search results, with big media companies taking their place go viral. /The Verge
Publishers expressed more concerns over cookies despite the Google delay. /DigiDay
Rumours that OpenAI is launching a search engine on May 9th started. /Beebom
Microsoft invested in OpenAI in a bid to keep up with Google. /Bloomberg