Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai testified in the US government’s antitrust trial against the company this week and during his testimony, he took a couple of swipes at Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (IE) browser. The company also questioned the Windows maker’s intent when it launched IE7 in 2005.
Google Chrome was ‘dramatic improvement’
While talking about Google Chrome, the company said soon after Microsoft launched IE7, Pichai and a small team started to work on Chrome browser.On why the company started to work on its own browser, Pichai said, “The browser market at the time had kind of stagnated.”
“They (Microsoft) were not that incented to improve the browser,” he added, saying that Chrome was a “pretty dramatic improvement” when it launched in 2008. Google Chrome eventually went on to dominate the market, essentially crushing the competition. During the trial, the company had said people choose Chrome because it offers better queries than Microsoft’s product.
Google also argued that if people are dissatisfied with default search engines, they can and do switch to another search provider – something which, the latest exhibits suggest, Microsoft didn’t offer in IE7. It has also argued the revenue-share agreements are legal.
The curious case of IE7
One of the exhibits contained information about Google’s problem with Microsoft. Google’s then-top lawyer David Drummond sent a letter on July 22, 2005, to Microsoft’s then-general counsel Brad Smith.
Drummond raised concerns that Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 had a small search bar which, by default, searched for a query on MSN. Google argued that Microsoft provided an option to change the default search engine setting but it was hidden and functionally useless.
“And since very few users are aware of the auto search feature in previous versions of IE (as even the employees from Microsoft acknowledge) that original default setting has very seldom been changed to popular search providers that users actually employ, like Google,” Drummond wrote.
Pichai also said that Microsoft was tech’s dominant player and a ruthless competitor in 2005 and it was doing an acceptable thing — prioritising its own products — in a uniquely shady way. He also noted that tech companies have only gotten more ruthless about self-prioritising.
Microsoft advertising Edge, Bing
Recent reports have suggested that when someone downloads Chrome on a Windows laptop, Microsoft injects pop-ups in a bid to convince users that they do not need to download another browser and that “Microsoft Edge runs on the same technology as Chrome.” In fact, it started to advertise Microsoft’s Bing AI chatbot while users are trying out Google’s Bard AI.
Google Chrome was ‘dramatic improvement’
While talking about Google Chrome, the company said soon after Microsoft launched IE7, Pichai and a small team started to work on Chrome browser.On why the company started to work on its own browser, Pichai said, “The browser market at the time had kind of stagnated.”
“They (Microsoft) were not that incented to improve the browser,” he added, saying that Chrome was a “pretty dramatic improvement” when it launched in 2008. Google Chrome eventually went on to dominate the market, essentially crushing the competition. During the trial, the company had said people choose Chrome because it offers better queries than Microsoft’s product.
Google also argued that if people are dissatisfied with default search engines, they can and do switch to another search provider – something which, the latest exhibits suggest, Microsoft didn’t offer in IE7. It has also argued the revenue-share agreements are legal.
The curious case of IE7
One of the exhibits contained information about Google’s problem with Microsoft. Google’s then-top lawyer David Drummond sent a letter on July 22, 2005, to Microsoft’s then-general counsel Brad Smith.
Drummond raised concerns that Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 had a small search bar which, by default, searched for a query on MSN. Google argued that Microsoft provided an option to change the default search engine setting but it was hidden and functionally useless.
“And since very few users are aware of the auto search feature in previous versions of IE (as even the employees from Microsoft acknowledge) that original default setting has very seldom been changed to popular search providers that users actually employ, like Google,” Drummond wrote.
Pichai also said that Microsoft was tech’s dominant player and a ruthless competitor in 2005 and it was doing an acceptable thing — prioritising its own products — in a uniquely shady way. He also noted that tech companies have only gotten more ruthless about self-prioritising.
Microsoft advertising Edge, Bing
Recent reports have suggested that when someone downloads Chrome on a Windows laptop, Microsoft injects pop-ups in a bid to convince users that they do not need to download another browser and that “Microsoft Edge runs on the same technology as Chrome.” In fact, it started to advertise Microsoft’s Bing AI chatbot while users are trying out Google’s Bard AI.
Denial of responsibility! TechCodex is an automatic aggregator of the all world’s media. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, and all materials to their authors. For any complaint, please reach us at – [email protected]. We will take necessary action within 24 hours.
Alex Smith is a writer and editor with over 10 years of experience. He has written extensively on a variety of topics, including technology, business, and personal finance. His work has been published in a number of magazines and newspapers, and he is also the author of two books. Alex is passionate about helping people learn and grow, and he believes that writing is a powerful tool for communication and understanding.
