“We’ve received multiple (if thin) reports that Apple is working on a search engine of some sort,” Michael Arrington reports for TechCrunch.
“Apple’s Safari browser has 6-7% market share, and currently uses Google as the search engine for both the standard and iPhone/iPod versions (unlike other browsers, you don’t have a choice),” Arrington reports.
MacDailyNews Take: Incorrect. For iPhone and iPod touch: Settings>Safari>Search Engine: Choose “Google” or “Yahoo!” And, of course, Safari is customizable by third-parties, including allowing the other search engine additions. One such example is David Watanabe’s Inquisitor.
Arrington continues, “Also, Apple can’t be super pleased with Google’s competition to the iPhone with Android. Google CEO Eric Schmidt, who’s also on Apple’s board of directors, sits out of discussions involving Apple’s mobile strategy, and rumor is he may leave the board. But one important fact that isn’t checking out – if Apple were building a search engine, they’d be hiring search experts and engineers. We’ve talked to a ton of them at all the big companies, and while some of them heard the same rumors, none have lost search employees to Apple, or heard of any specific hirings.”
“Here’s what we think is really going on: Apple doesn’t like the search experience on its mobile devices, and may be building a radically different user experience which is much more visual than exists today,” Arrington reports. “It will likely still be powered by Google…”
More in the full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Jonathan G.” for the heads up.]