Big Tech
Microsoft Considered Investing Billions in Apple Deal to Compete With Google Search
- Company attempted to make Bing default on Safari browser
- Microsoft CEO met with Tim Cook to discuss search deal terms
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Microsoft Corp. weighed investing multiple billions of dollars in a deal with Apple Inc. in 2016 to make its Bing search engine the default on the Safari browser and better compete with Alphabet Inc.’s dominant Google, a Microsoft executive testified Thursday in court.
Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella met with Apple CEO Tim Cook as part of the talks, said Jon Tinter, a Microsoft business development vice president who is on the stand during the US Justice Department’s antitrust trial in Washington against Alphabet. Microsoft would have taken a multi-billion dollar loss on the terms of the deal, Tinter said, but it would have bolstered Bing, eventually allowing it to gain more market share and revenue.