During Google's landmark antitrust trial, a Microsoft executive revealed that the company had considered taking a significant financial hit in a deal with Apple to replace Google as the default search engine on Apple's web browser. The trial, which has accused Google of maintaining an illegal monopoly by making annual payments of over $10 billion to partner companies like Apple and AT&T, has shed light on the contentious issue of default search engine deals.

According to Jon Tinter, a Microsoft business development vice president, the discussions within Microsoft in 2016 revolved around the possibility of making a multi-billion-dollar investment in an Apple deal that would have resulted in substantial losses for Microsoft. The motive behind this move was to chip away at Google's dominant market share. Tinter stated that Microsoft even went as far as arranging a meeting between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Apple CEO Tim Cook to explore the potential deal. However, in the end, the deal never materialized. It would have required Microsoft to share ad revenue from user searches with Apple.

Default search engine deals have become a hot topic throughout the trial, with Google controlling roughly 90% of the online search market. Tinter admitted that Microsoft has struggled to secure similar deals for its search engine, Bing, despite offering potential partners 100% or more of ad revenue. He expressed frustration, stating that Microsoft was "just big enough to play but not big enough to win."

Google's lawyers, however, have denied any anticompetitive behavior on the company's part. They argue that consumers choose Google's search engine because it is simply the best product available. This defense aligns with the testimony of Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president of services, who appeared as a witness for the defense. Cue defended Apple's decision to maintain Google as the default search engine on its devices, stating that there was no valid alternative at the time. He emphasized the quality of Google's product as the primary reason for their continued partnership.

Cue's testimony also revealed that a clause in their deal with Google required both parties to "support and defend" the partnership against legal threats. He disclosed that Google's legal team had pushed for this clause to be included during contract renegotiations in 2016. The deal between Apple and Google has been in place since 2002 and was most recently renewed in 2021.

The trial has faced criticism for its lack of public transparency, particularly regarding sensitive internal company information. Several witnesses, including Cue, have given testimony in closed-court sessions. The secrecy surrounding the trial prompted Judge Amit Mehta to temporarily block the posting of trial exhibits to a public website, a decision that was later reversed. The trial is of significant importance, as it marks the largest antitrust trial in two decades.