It used to be that "Apple should buy Netflix" for several years, on and off. Now this. Analysts have always misunderstood Apple, what it focuses on and what it will not do. They come up with meaningless recommendations that Apple will not even spare time for an elevator pitch.

Wherever Apple sees any deficiencies, it works by secrecy, non-acceptance (or denial, like "you're holding it wrong", depending on the case) and creating its own way out of it without any or barely any acknowledgment of deficiencies (or wrong doing, as the case may be).

I personally believe that, more than having a search engine, Apple would be better off with an online maps solution (including navigation) that anybody could use, regardless of their hardware and OS. It has already opened up it's iWork suite on the cloud for everyone with a browser. Would Apple consider such a move with maps (though it's a very weak competitor in most countries outside the US)? I don't think so.

Also DuckDuckGo is nowhere close to Google's results for many intents and purposes (I know anecdotally many people find it extremely useful). Apple buying it would be a dead investment not just for this reason, but also because Apple doesn't really know how to manage and run certain online services well