Preparation is in full swing for “the most expensive product launch in history.”
It’s possible that Apple is preparing to take on Google on its own soil. According to writer Robert Scoble, Apple is preparing to establish its own search engine, which is a very possible prospect.
An extensive Twitter conversation about what to expect from Apple at the next WWDC and beyond had come to an end with this statement. Don’t hold your breath for an announcement just yet, as this is still in the “beyond” segment.
According to Scoble, this would be “the most costly product launch of all time,” thus it would be a significant project given Apple’s history of high-cost product launches. A combination of information gleaned through interactions with sources and his own deductions, he told the site that this will most likely be revealed in January of next year.
Why search?
The scope of this initiative isn’t totally apparent. Google, Bing, and DuckDuckGo are the first things that come to mind when we think of search engines, but it’s also where Siri receives its information, so may there be something going on behind the scenes?
When asked about this on Twitter, Scoble replied he wasn’t sure, although he did say that this would be a major deal for Siri, specifically:
In other places, he elaborated on this. In response to a question regarding sources, he said, “I had dinner six years ago with the head of Siri at Apple and he spelled out why Siri would need to be rebuilt.” “That rebuild has yet to be seen. The headset is included.”
Is it possible that this is more than just a joke and is a genuine alternative to Google? The phrase “most expensive product launch” and the accompanying cash incentive surely imply this.
Ad revenue is expected to reach $149 billion in 2021, and the majority of that money will come from search-related ad sales, according to Google’s parent company, Alphabet.
Apple may believe it can compete with Google by making its own search engine the default in Safari rather than allowing Google to remain the default.
However, this does not come without some risk. For the past 22 years, Google has been the dominating search engine. Even when established by corporations with enormous R&D resources, such as Microsoft and Yahoo, rivals have struggled to gain traction.
In theory, it’s not a bad idea for Apple to make Google the default search engine in Safari. However, the business is reportedly taking in over $15 billion a year from Google simply for that (opens in new tab). An enormous amount of money is being sacrificed for something that could very easily fail.
In January, we’ll have to wait and see what happens.