G auctions slots for default search engine on EU Androids

[brotherhood of LAN]

Google is implementing a choice screen for general search providers on all Android phones and tablets shipped into the European Economic Area (EEA) where the Google Search app is pre-installed.

The choice screen will appear during initial device setup and will feature multiple search providers, including Google.

Google will use a first-price sealed-bid auction to select the other general search providers that appear in the choice screen. Google will conduct auctions on a per-country basis

[android.com...]

[engine]

FYI [webmasterworld.com...]

It smarts a bit, but nothing says they can't do that.

Great to be in a strong position, eh.

[brotherhood of LAN]

Ah, cheers! Never saw the other one.

[Dimitri]

Also the bid is the price that SE are ready to pay for "each" user, and Google will send monthly bills to these SE based on the number of users having selected them. If someone switches , I guess it counts as a new user each time.