Published 14:52 IST, December 21st 2024
Alphabet’s Google has proposed a loosening of its agreements with Apple and others to set Google as the default search engine on new devices, in a bid to address a US ruling that it unlawfully dominates online search.
The proposal is much narrower than the government’s push to make Google sell its Chrome browser, which Google called a drastic attempt to intervene in the search market.
Google urged U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta in Washington to move cautiously in deciding what the company must do to restore competition, after his ruling that the company holds an illegal monopoly in online search and related advertising. Courts have cautioned against imposing antitrust remedies that chill innovation, Google said in court papers.
That is especially true “in an environment where remarkable artificial intelligence innovations are rapidly changing how people interact with many online products and services, including search engines,” Google said.
While Google plans to appeal that ruling at the end of the case, it says the upcoming “remedies” phase should focus on its distribution agreements with browser developers, mobile device manufacturers, and wireless carriers.
The judge found the agreements give Google a “major, largely unseen advantage over its rivals” and result in most devices in the U.S. coming pre-loaded with Google’s search engine.
The agreements are hard to exit, the judge said, especially for Android manufacturers, which must agree to install Google search in order to include Google’s Play Store on their devices.
To fix that, Google could make them non-exclusive and, for Android phone manufacturers, unbundle its Play Store from Chrome and search, the company said in its proposal.
Google would allow browser developers that agree to set its search engine as the default to revisit that decision annually under the proposal.
REVENUE SHARING
Unlike the government’s proposal, Google’s would not end revenue sharing agreements, which pass a portion of ad revenue Google makes from search to the device and software companies that present it as the default search engine.
Independent browser developers including Mozilla, which makes Firefox, have said the funds are crucial to their operations. Apple received an estimated $20 billion from its agreement with Google in 2022 alone.
Kamyl Bazbaz, spokesperson for search engine competitor DuckDuckGo, said the proposal attempts to maintain the status quo.
“Once a court finds a violation of competition laws, the remedy must not only stop the illegal conduct and prevent its recurrence, but restore competition in the affected markets,” he said.
Google’s proposal sets the stage for a trial Mehta will hold in April, where the U.S. Department of Justice and a coalition of states will seek to show the need for wide-ranging remedies, including making Google sell off Chrome and potentially its Android mobile operating system.
The government plans to call witnesses from OpenAI, AI search startup Perplexity, and Microsoft, according to court papers.
Prosecutors also want Google to stop paying to be the default search engine, and cease investments in search rivals and query-based AI products, and license its search results and technology to rivals.
The proposals aim to spur innovation in online search, where Mehta found Google’s overwhelming market share keeps competitors from gathering the search data needed to improve their products, and prevent Google from extending its dominance in search to AI.
Updated 14:52 IST, December 21st 2024
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Ozarks Teacher Corps, CFO award scholarships to teachers who return to rural hometowns – News-Leader
Four students from Missouri State University’s College of Education have been selected to receive money to return to their hometowns or another rural setting, to begin their teaching careers.
They will be part of the Ozarks Teacher Corps, a scholarship program funded by the Community Foundation of the Ozarks.
For their part, the future teachers commit to teaching in a rural district for at least three years after graduation.
As part of the corps, they gain professional development and are able to finish their degrees without financial pressure. The program is open to all college juniors and seniors in the region.
This slate of scholarship recipients include:
The Ozarks Teacher Corps was launched in 2010-11 as part of the CFO’s Rural Schools Partnership, an initiative driven by the belief that “public education is a linchpin issue in rural economic development.”
Crumm, who is from Marshfield, enrolled at Missouri State in fall 2023 after earning an associate degree in teacher education at Ozarks Technical Community College.
“Returning home to teach is something I’m looking forward to because I understand the specific needs and culture of my community,” she said, in a release. “I want to give back to the community that shaped who I am today.”
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Rhonda Bishop, co-director for the Center for Rural Education at Missouri State, said public schools serve as the hub of the community. “The impact teachers have on the parents and children they serve is incredibly powerful.”
Bishop graduated from a rural high school and was an educator in rural districts for 29 years. “To know we’re sending some of the best into rural situations is what makes me the proudest.”
Applications for the Ozarks Teacher Corps Scholarship will open Jan. 1, 2025. The CFO provides about $1.7 million in scholarships every year for students from central and southern Missouri.
For more information, go to cfozarks.org/applyforscholarships.