Google to let EU users choose their search provider on Android

Google announced on Friday it would introduce a new way for Android users in Europe to choose a search provider in Chrome. Starting in 2020, during device setup, users will be presented with a screen with several search providers, organized randomly. 

This follows the $5 billion fine imposed by the  European Commission on Google in July 2018 for breaching Europe’s antitrust laws. To comply with the EC’s demands, Google started presenting Android users in Europe with search app and browser options in Google Play.

Now, Google is presenting Android users with a choice screen when they set up their devices. But how does the company choose which search providers show up? 

According to Google, they will need to apply to be included and have to bid for inclusion, stating the price they’re willing to pay when a user selects them. Eligible search providers will vary by country, and each country will have a minimum bid threshold. The three highest bidders for a given country will appear in the choice screen for that country. The number of eligible search providers in each country, as well as the bids, will not be made public. 

In this way, Google will effectively make money every time a user chooses a search engine that’s not Google. It’ll be interesting to see how the EC sees the way Google has spun this — while the choice screen does offer a fairer choice to end users, it may not be exactly fair to search providers who have to outbid each other in order to appear next to Google. 

One rival search provider definitely isn’t happy about it. In a statement to Bloomberg, Qwant CEO Eric Leandri said asking for cash “just for showing a proposal of alternatives” is “total abuse of the dominant position.”

There’s still a chance for search engine providers to show up in the choice screen without submitting a bid. In the FAQ section of its page devoted to the choice screen, Google says the following: “In the event that fewer than three eligible search providers meet or exceed the bid threshold, Google will fill any remaining slots randomly from the pool of eligible search providers. The pool of eligible providers will include those that applied to participate in the choice screen but did not submit bids.”

From the users’ perspective, the choice screen will only show up on their devices during initial setup. And regardless of their initial choice, users will be able to change their default search provider later.