{"id":79083,"date":"2025-05-02T09:50:30","date_gmt":"2025-05-02T16:50:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/?p=79083"},"modified":"2025-05-02T12:19:14","modified_gmt":"2025-05-02T19:19:14","slug":"google-search-deals-and-browser-choice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/en\/mozilla\/internet-policy\/google-search-deals-and-browser-choice\/","title":{"rendered":"Mozilla\u2019s CEO discusses testimony in U.S. v. Google search case"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Today, Mozilla Chief Financial Officer, Eric Muhlheim, testified in the <em>U.S. v. Google LLC <\/em>search trial, highlighting the potential impacts this case could have on small and independent browsers, and the overall ecosystem.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are a few key themes of Muhlheim\u2019s testimony that we\u2019ll expound on:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Mozilla\u2019s search options are based on user choice&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Firefox users view Google as the best quality search engine. Mozilla experienced this firsthand when we switched the Firefox browser\u2019s default search engine from Google to Yahoo between 2014 and 2017 in an effort to support search competition. Firefox users found Yahoo\u2019s search quality lacking and some switched to Google search while others left the Firefox browser altogether.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Firefox offers its users greater and more easily accessible search engine choice than any major browser. From providing search engine shortcuts, to easy default settings and a range of options in the address bar, alternative search engines are readily available within Firefox. Put simply, our long-standing <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/en\/mozilla\/promoting-choice-and-innovation-on-the-web\/\">search strategy<\/a> has been to evaluate and select the best search experience region by region, enabling choice for Firefox users with more than 50 search providers across more than 90 locales. We make sure our agreements do not make Google an exclusive search provider on Firefox or impede our ability to promote choice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The breaking point<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s no secret that search revenue accounts for a large portion of Mozilla\u2019s annual revenue. Firefox is an independent browser \u2014 we don\u2019t have our own OS, devices, or app store. Without this revenue, Mozilla and other small, independent browsers may be forced to scale back operations and cut support for critical projects like Gecko, the only remaining browser engine competing with Google\u2019s Chromium and Apple\u2019s WebKit.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Innovation, privacy and user choice can only thrive when browser engines compete. Without that, there\u2019s no push to make the web faster, safer, or more inclusive. If we lose or weaken Gecko, the web will be optimized for commercial business models and priorities, not the values that Mozilla champions for the web such as privacy, accessibility and user choice. The open web only stays open if websites, apps, and content interoperate and work everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Truly improving competition and choice cannot solve one problem by creating another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The path forward<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Following the testimony, Laura Chambers, CEO of Mozilla, emphasized what we\u2019d like to see coming out of the trial by stating: \u201cThis case will shape the competitive landscape of the internet for years to come, and any remedy must strengthen, rather than weaken, the independent alternatives that people rely on for privacy, innovation, and choice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Smaller, independent browsers, like Firefox, rely on monetization through search partnerships to sustain our work and invest in user-focused innovation. Without these partnerships, we\u2019d face serious constraints\u2014limiting not just our ability to grow but also the availability to provide a non-profit-backed alternative to Chrome, Edge, and Safari.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This case is also about user choice. Mozilla\u2019s approach to search is built around giving people options. Time and again, we\u2019ve seen people leave our browser when forced to use a search engine they don\u2019t prefer. Without search partnerships, independent browsers \u2014 like Mozilla\u2019s Firefox browser and Gecko browser engine \u2014 would face severe constraints.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We recognize the importance of improving search competition. However, doing so shouldn\u2019t come at the cost of browser competition. We believe the court should ensure that small and independent browsers are not harmed in any final remedies. Without this, we risk trading one monopoly for another, and the vibrant, people-first web we\u2019ve spent decades fighting for could begin to fade.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Today, Mozilla Chief Financial Officer, Eric Muhlheim, testified in the U.S. v. Google LLC search trial, highlighting the potential impacts this case could have on small and independent browsers, and the overall ecosystem.&nbsp; There are a few key themes of Muhlheim\u2019s testimony that we\u2019ll expound on:&nbsp; Mozilla\u2019s search options are based on user choice&nbsp; Firefox [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":144,"featured_media":78766,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[290364,5],"tags":[4708],"coauthors":[306191],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Mozilla\u2019s CEO discusses testimony in U.S. v. Google search case<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Mozilla&#039;s CFO testified in the U.S. v. 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