The fact Google pays Apple an annual fee to remain the default search engine on Safari for iPhones and iPads is certainly no big secret. In fact, in 2014 the company paid the Cupertino-based giant $1 billion, and last year this was upped to $3 billion. According to analyst Rod Hall, though, this year’s deal could see the figure rise to a whopping $9 billion.
 
Reportedly, Apple is one of the biggest channels of traffic acquisition for Google – it accounts for roughly half of all mobile revenue – so it’s certainly no surprise to see the figure rise once again. However, it’ll be interesting to see how high Apple can take this number without pushing Google away entirely. After all, while this year’s figure represents triple the price paid last year, Hall expects the number to grow even further over the course of the next twelve months, with estimations pointing towards a price of $12 billion in 2019.
 
Until Google refuses to go any higher, Apple is expected to continue benefiting from the internet giant’s generosity. And even if the company does refuse to pay Apple’s fee, the iPhone giant could simply approach Microsoft with an offer that would see Bing become the default option. Regardless, it’s a win-win situation for Apple as the deals are understood to be almost entirely profit for the company.