Kurt Shintaku's Blog

Recently, there’s been a lot of news bulletins posted about Google’s accusations that we’re "squeezing them unfairly" in the search race by making Windows Live Search the default in IE 7.0.

 

To this, I respond:

 

1)  TRY IE 7.0:  If you’ve installed Internet Explorer 7.0, you know that switching between search engines is VERY EASY.  It’s right there in the options and you can change it to Google or Ask or anything else you darn well choose.

 

2)  TRY OPERA OR SAFARI OR FIREFOX:  If you’ve installed any other browser you know that Google is not only the default engine, it’s also in some cases downright difficult to set your search engine to Windows Live Search.

 

3)  GOOGLE WANTS TO HAVE ITS CAKE AND EAT IT TOO:  Google is declaring that Microsoft is "not allowing consumer choice" by having the audacity to set Windows Live Search as the default search engine in Internet Explorer 7.0.  Meanwhile, they’re not remaining completely MUM about browsers like Firefox that have Google as its default… much less a browser like Safari that doesn’t allow anyone else OTHER than Google as a search engine.

 

So, in a fit of hypocrisy, Google has broken out the lawyers, filed what amounts to ridiculous legal paperwork, and forced us to ring up another laundry list of legal costs – all to defend ourselves from an assault directed by a company that’s supposedly governed by the credo of "doing no evil."

 

If you want a good summary of the situation, check this out:
http://dondodge.typepad.com/the_next_big_thing/2006/05/google_supports.html