Microsoft Bing Could Replace Google as the iPhone's Default Search Engine

Since the iPhone OS debuted, Google has been the default search engine. But that could change soon, if an unconfirmed report is correct.

Talks are supposedly in talks to make Microsoft's new Bing search engine the default on Apple's smartphones and handhelds.

Apple vs. Microsoft vs. Google
These three companies are in "coopetition": they all make rival smartphone operating systems, but cooperate in other ways. That makes this situation complicated.

Apple and Google have worked closely together for years, but that relationship has been falling part in recent months, especially as Google's Android OS has come to be a serious competitor for the iPhone OS.

On the other hand, Apple and Microsoft have been going head-to-head for decades now, sometimes cooperating, sometimes bitter rivals.

Still, a switch from Google Search to Bing could simply be about cash, not grudges or inter-company rivalries. Microsoft has been working very hard to make Bing relevant in the search engine market, and could be willing to pay Apple more than Google is to be the default option on the iPhone.

Source: BusinessWeek