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Apple Replaces Bing With Google as Search Engine For Siri and Spotlight (geekwire.com)

Posted by msmash on from the time-for-a-change dept.

Apple is ditching Bing and will now use Google to power the default search engine for Siri, Search within iOS (iOS search bar), and Spotlight on Mac. From a report: TechCrunch reported Monday that Apple users will now see search results powered by Google, instead of Bing, when using those tools. For example, when an iPhone user asks Siri a question that needs a search engine result, the voice assistant will now pull from Google, not Bing. Apple will still use Bing for image search queries using Siri or Spotlight on Mac, TechCrunch reported. Apple said the move was done for consistency; its Safari browser uses Google as the default search engine. In a statement, the company told TechCrunch that "we have strong relationships with Google and Microsoft and remain committed to delivering the best user experience possible." Google is reportedly paying Apple $3 billion this year to remain as the default search engine on iPhones and iPads.

2 of 54 comments (clear)

  1. All the data by DogDude · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Hey, good for Google! Now, they've got every bit of data from every human on the planet using an Android *or* and iPhone! Good for them! That's pretty impressive. As a retailer, it's really much easier to have eveybody's data in one place. We've got so much information about our customers now, that it's like shooting fish in a barrel.

    --
    I don't respond to AC's.
  2. Re:New billion-dollar deal for Apple with Google? by Albanach · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Fortunately you can still change the default search engine - I'm using DuckDuckGo on both my phone and my computer. It seems to work about as well as Google.

    Really? I do a search for Target Pharmacy hours tomorrow. Duckduckgo gives me a page full of links - Google and Bing both give me an answer.

    Search has moved on from Altavista, and when we're talking about search in response to voice commands it becomes double important to be able to answer natural language queries with natural language results.

    Not that I'm dismissing the privacy concern. I think it's a valid one, just that the example of duckduckgo as a fully fledged alternative doesn't really work.