Slowly but surely, Apple is removing Google's presence from its software and operating systems, with the latest news suggesting that the company will replace Google with Yahoo or Bing as Safari's default search engine.
The news comes as Google's deal with Apple to use Google as the default search engine in the Internet browser is set to expire in 2015.
Both Microsoft and Yahoo have reportedly been in talks with Eddy Cue, Apple's Internet software and services senior vice president, about becoming the default search engine in Safari. Yahoo has long wanted to have a more prominent position in iOS, with the company having successfully convinced Mozilla to include it as the default in Firefox.
Yahoo has also reportedly been working on revamping its mobile search in hopes of landing the deal with Apple, despite the fact that no deal has officially been made yet.
Despite Yahoo's bid, considering the fact that Bing is the default for Siri, as well as the fact that Bing is rather heavily integrated into Apple's OS X Yosemite, it would not be at all surprising if Apple instead opted to work with Microsoft.
Microsoft is said to have been in the running for the deal that Google originally won in 2010. Apple's deal with Google has reportedly led to the company getting more than $1 billion per year from the search company.
Changing the default search engine on an Internet browser is a big deal, considering the fact that most users don't bother changing the default, even though that is possible.
It's not surprising that Apple doesn't want to continue working with Google. The company dropped Maps and YouTube apps as default apps in iOS 7, which was released in 2013. Competition between the two companies has been growing ever since Google first began working on Android, which has grown to become the main competitor to Apple's iOS. Apple also uses data from Yahoo in many of its apps, especially its Stocks app.
If Google is dropped as the default search engine on Safari, it will be a blow to the company, but not one that could see it being toppled as the search leader, especially considering the fact that Safari only holds around 5 percent of the desktop Internet browser market. It does, however, own 45 percent of the mobile browser market share, making Apple's decision a very important one for the search engines that could replace Google.
A decision will likely be made within the next few weeks, with the deal between Apple and Google set to expire in "early 2015."
