The internet and social media have been buzzing talking about how Apple should buy search engine DuckDuckGo. While I think this would be a great fit for Apple, I don’t believe this will happen.

We all know that Apple gets paid from Google to make Safari use Google as its default search engine out of the box, but it’s not the only option. You can choose other search engines like Bing, Yahoo, or DuckDuckGo if you prefer them.

But this is a large deal for Apple, and I am sure they have no intention of losing that money plus Apple does not have a huge history of buying internet companies. While DuckDuckGo does use Apple Maps for their maps service and does share in Apple’s security-focused mission, I just do not see Apple making the acquisition because there is nothing for Apple to gain here in the long run.

Apple would be able to make their default search engine whatever they want once their deal is up with Google but here is the issue. Google pays Apple around $7 billion annually to be the default search engine on iOS. Google makes about $25 billion in ad revenue from searches on iPhones, iPads, and Macs yearly. Apple couldn’t capture all that revenue if they purchased DuckDuckGo.

Apple Maps deal with DuckDuckGo is confidential I am sure Apple is getting paid for all the Apple Maps API calls which is money Apple would have to kiss goodbye if they buy DuckDuckGo.

The larger picture here is Apple revenue while would I love to see Apple buy DuckDuckGo of course. I think they would be a great addition to Apples very security-focused vision but the truth is Apple has more to gain by not buying its own search engine. Right now, Apple is making 7 billion on search and don’t need to do anything. While I would love for Apple to buy DuckDuckGo I don’t think they ever will.