It added that reported payments to some manufacturers and mobile network operators to exclusively use Google apps as well as preventing some from running alternative versions of Android ran counter to antitrust regulation.

In particular, EU lawmakers noted that Alphabet made it mandatory for smartphone manufacturers to pre-install Google’s suite of apps, including search and Chrome, if they wished to be able to access the Play Store. denied European consumers the benefits of effective competition”, deeming the practice to be illegal under EU law. Why is Google being forced to ask users for their preference?Ī landmark ruling by EU antitrust regulators in July 2018 fined Alphabet (Google’s parent company) nearly 5 billion USD, stating that “Google has used Android as a vehicle to cement the dominance of its search engine. This doesn’t mean it will automatically become the most popular search engine among Android devices in the EU, but it is a strong boost to the company’s image and overall visibility. Privacy-conscious search engine DuckDuckGo won a competitive bidding process to be shown as the most frequent option in EU countries. Google will remain an option, but users will have to explicitly state their preference for it to remain the default setting. The default search provider’s dedicated app will also be installed on individual devices.

The selection will become their default site whenever they initiate a search in Chrome or the Android home search box. Starting March, users will be given the option to choose between four search engines when they register and set up an Android device. New Android users in the EU are set to benefit from an antitrust ruling that the European Union issued last year.

Duckduckgo search engine app