According to the New York Times on Sunday, Samsung is considering changing from Google to Microsoft’s Bing as the regular search engine on its phones and tablets. This would doubt a contract worth an estimated three billion dollars per year.
Although only accounting for slightly more than 1% of Alphabet’s yearly income totals around $280 billion, the Samsung contract indicates that Google’s control over search engine technology may be deteriorating. The New York Times they have noted “panic” among Alphabet personnel about this agreement.
Alphabet’s stock decreased by as much as 4.1% on Monday morning, leading to the company losing $57 billion in market value. In contrast, Microsoft shares rose 1.6%.
Microsoft’s stock had done better than Alphabet’s for the past few months, with an increase of 21% in Microsoft shares since November when ChatGPT, a popular chatbot from OpenAI, was incorporated into Bing. Over the same period, Alphabet stocks have gone up 10%.
Microsoft is showing a “renewed energy” in artificial intelligence, giving them an advantage over other companies, as per the Goldman Sachs analysts headed by Kash Rangan in their note to customers last month.
While the news of Google’s stock drop and potential replacement by Bing is certainly noteworthy, keeping a broader perspective on the tech industry is important. The industry is constantly evolving and changing, and we will likely continue to see shifts and changes as different players compete for dominance.
Source: Forbes
