Cliqz pulls the plug on a European anti-tracking alternative to Google search

guest · May 1, 2020

Cliqz pulls the plug on a European anti-tracking alternative to Google search
May 1, 2020
https://techcrunch.com/2020/05/01/c...n-anti-tracking-alternative-to-google-search/

Cliqz, a Munch-based anti-tracking browser with private search baked in that has sought to offer a local alternative to Google powered by its own search index, is shutting down — claiming this arm of its business has been blindsided by the coronavirus crisis.

The bigger challenge is of course competing in a market so dominated by Google .
In Europe, where the tech giant’s search engine commands a marketshare approaching 95%, trying to lure users to an alternative ecosystem is difficult at the best of times, and a pandemic is certainly not that.
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“We have reached several hundred thousand daily users. But — and this is the disadvantage of running our own technology — this is not enough to run a search engine, to cover our costs. And most of all, we failed to convince the political stakeholders, that Europe desperately needs an own independent digital infrastructure.”

While the Cliqz browser and search is being shuttered, the company is not closing down entirely — and a spokesman confirmed Ghostery will continue.

“The 100% Cliqz subsidiary Ghostery, headed by Jeremy Tillman, will continue to bundle Cliqz’s expertise in the area of anti-tracking,” it wrote.
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Cliqz: Farewell from Cliqz

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Cliqz pulls the plug on a European anti-tracking alternative to Google search

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