On the flip side, if default placement was eliminated and browsers asked users which search engine they'd like on first launch...I still believe most users would pick Google anyway and the main loser would be Firefox as search engine placement is the majority of their revenue.
Furthermore, ChatGPT reaching 100m users in 2 months also suggests that browser placement isn't the biggest factor into where users send their queries.
The success of the Chrome browser on desktop proves otherwise, no?
It's interesting that the argument is "nobody can compete with defaults" when one of the proposed remedies is to break off the part of the company that was too successful at competing with defaults.
Chrome organic growth was powered by a special confluence of historical events:
- IE was bloated and lazy from being dominant
- Google controlled one of the most visited websites in the world (pre-mobile appification)
- V8 performance boosted the web's then-cutting-edge js features
Those are huge tailwinds.
In contrast to now, where Chrome spends more time trying to deprecate mv2, link user browing to a Google identity, and find a way to recreate tracking cookies.
When's the last time Chrome shipped innovation that made users' lives measurably better? Per tab processes?
There's a lot more ebike manufacturers than phone and laptop manufacturers, and some of them might not have the best quality control in light of the heavy competition.
There has recently been some real progress in this front, with the FAA approving unleaded fuel in about 600 engine models. Basically, aviators have been waiting a long time for the government to stop forcing them to use leaded fuel.
Crypto is its own banking system but going from fiat to crypto falls within the current banking system, unless you're willing to buy crypto with bundles of cash and risk getting mugged.
Advanced Cash
AliPay
Cash Deposit
Chase QuickPay
Face to face (in-person)
Faster Payments
HalCash
Interac e-Transfer
Japan Zengin Furikomi
MoneyBeam (N26)
MoneyGram
National bank transfer
Perfect Money
Popmoney
PromptPay
Revolut
SEPA
SEPA Instant
Swish
Transfer with same bank
Transfer with specific banks
Uphold
US Postal Money Order
WeChat Pay
Western Union
Zelle
And no, I don't think they asked permission.
It's so funny. Whenever people say you can't do X with crypto, there is always something they don't know about that proves them wrong.
> unless you're willing to buy crypto with bundles of cash and risk getting mugged
I'm trying not to fall into a "Survivorship bias" here but I made 10s if not 100s of trades on LocalBitcoin years ago without issue. I wasn't meeting at people's houses or in some dark alley, I was in the Kroger (grocery store) parking lot or even inside Kroger or the Mall. I don't disagree with your point that fiat->crypto is not as easy as some people pretend it is but I just wanted to push back a little bit on the second part of your statement.
Yes, sort of, as is Freedombox and Urbit and probably a few others. So another way of phrasing my post is that I'm surprised Jeff Bezos (or one of his ilk) hasn't gotten tired of waiting for Sandstorm/Urbit/etc to get good enough for my grandma to use, and just assigned 5k dev-years to the project.
Technically, one can still buy cryptocurrency using a Visa/MC card and then use that to pay for PornHub.
They've made it more inconvenient certainly but I don't see why card companies should be forced to directly do business with anyone.
