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Microsoft kicks off search effort (Microsoft throws down gauntlet to Google)
CNET ^ | 2/1/2005 | Stefanie Olsen

Posted on 02/01/2005 6:38:41 AM PST by KwasiOwusu

Microsoft on Monday replaced Yahoo's search technology with its own homespun software and will kick off a huge advertising campaign to supplant Google in consumers' hearts.

As expected, MSN, a unit of the software giant, has taken its Web search technology out of the laboratory, and placed it on MSN's newly redesigned home page in 25 countries. Two and a half years in the making, MSN Search will now be the focal point of the updated, lighter-weight site; and it is the subject of Microsoft's newest ad campaign, which includes television, print, Internet and outdoor promotions.

MSN Search Vice President Christopher Payne would not disclose ad spending, but he estimated that 90 percent of Americans, as well as U.K. and Japanese residents, will encounter the campaign. television ads, for example, will run during the Super Bowl, the Oscars and the Grammys. "Oh, you're going to notice it," he said.
....................................
Google is still at the top of the heap, but its lead is shrinking. In December 2004, Google served about 34.7 percent of the market, down 0.3 percent from the previous period in 2003, according to ComScore Networks. During the same period, Yahoo jumped from serving 27 percent of the market to 31.9 percent. And MSN added a point to its position, going from 15.4 percent to 16.3 percent from December to December.

Key to MSN's strategy to win over the Web population is providing "answers" to queries, rather than millions of links, Payne said. While Yahoo, Ask Jeeves, Google and smaller sites like Answers.com have sought to fill in search requests with answers to questions on the weather, entertainment and package tracking, MSN believes it can do one better with its encyclopedia software Encarta.

(Excerpt) Read more at news.com.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; Technical
KEYWORDS: closedsourcewacko; freedomfromgates; gatesgroupie; google; kneepads; kwasiowusu; littleprecious; lowqualitycrap; microsoft; microsoftastroturf; msdrone; msshill; paidshill; yahoo
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To: Space Wrangler

LOL.

Perfect.


81 posted on 02/01/2005 10:53:08 AM PST by Petronski (I haven't slept for six days . . . because that would be too long.)
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To: Arthalion

Well said.

MSN is a joke, on par with Netscape's home page, (the irony I'm sure will be lost on Quasimodo), chock full of cyber-waste best suited to People magazine or Tiger Beat.

I'm on a dialup, and I don't typically bookmark clutter aimed at the MassMind, much less make it a home page. (Google is mine, by the way).

For the record, I have a Hotmail account, (and Yahoo), and being on a dialup use Firefox to block a lot of the clutter.

Gates and crew could use some tips from this site:

http://www.webpagesthatsuck.com/


82 posted on 02/01/2005 10:54:03 AM PST by JoJo Gunn (More than two lawyers in any Country constitutes a terrorist organization. ©)
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To: KwasiOwusu

Trust me, break down their stats and I GUARANTEE You will find the bulk of "msn.com"'s traffic is simply from folks who use hot mail... many who don't use any other part of MSN and I bet you dollar to doughnuts many of them had their hotmail accounts before MS even bought the company.

MS on the internet has been a dud, the only "successes" they have are the ones they acquired. Just like MSNBC is a joke on Cable.. MSN on the internet is equally a joke.


83 posted on 02/01/2005 10:54:42 AM PST by HamiltonJay
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To: HamiltonJay
"MS had complete access to every ounce of Quicken Info and still couldn't beat them"



You have but a pathetic ONE example, I have WordPerfect, Lotus, Netscape, Real Networks, Palm etc etc, all clobbered by Microsoft after coming in from behind.

I still win.
I still like Microsoft's chances against Google.

"I'm still waiting for SQL Server to live up to Gates promises about it.. what now, close to 10 years ago now?"

SQL Server is the # 1 database server on Microsoft Windows Server (the only platform that Microsoft SQL Server runs on), having overtaken Oracle long ago.
In Microsoft's last quarter results released last week, sales of Microsoft SQL Server were simply SMOKING..up a solid 25%.

The awesome new version of SQL Server (Yukon)coming out this year is going to send Microsoft SQL Server to even greater heights
You don't have any ground to stand on dude.
84 posted on 02/01/2005 10:55:09 AM PST by KwasiOwusu
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To: HamiltonJay
"Trust me, break down their stats and I GUARANTEE You will find the bulk of "msn.com"'s traffic is simply from folks who use hot mail"

# 1 , I never trust Microsoft haters with agendas.
And # 2, the figures are there at comScore for everyone to see.
If you have any proof for your statement I'd like to see it.

And # 3, as I already pointed out,Hotmail is part of msn.
So you lose either way.
85 posted on 02/01/2005 10:58:52 AM PST by KwasiOwusu
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To: JoJo Gunn
"MSN is a joke, on par with Netscape's home page"


MSN is the # 2 web property on the entire planet.
No amount of angst and anguish and bitterness and pain from you is going to change the facts. :)
All you are going to get is take your blood pressure right up.
Not good for you.
86 posted on 02/01/2005 11:02:10 AM PST by KwasiOwusu
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To: KwasiOwusu
I don't care if MSN is number ONE, Little Precious. The fact remains that MSN, like Netscape's page, aims for the lowest common denominator, such as people who mimic advertisements.
87 posted on 02/01/2005 11:07:15 AM PST by JoJo Gunn (More than two lawyers in any Country constitutes a terrorist organization. ©)
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To: JoJo Gunn
"I don't care if MSN is number ONE"

I do.
And so do advertisers.
And that's what counts.
Whether you care or not is....like totally irrelevant.
88 posted on 02/01/2005 11:09:36 AM PST by KwasiOwusu
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To: KwasiOwusu

Kwasi... GOOGLE is a VERB in our language now.. MSN is the butt of a joke.

Lets see other Microsoft failures... well there's MSNBC, MS MONEY, X BOX, etc etc etc...

Yes MS has deep pockets... but they don't always win.

Keep shilling well though, earn your pay.


89 posted on 02/01/2005 11:12:29 AM PST by HamiltonJay
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To: KwasiOwusu

Irrelevant, Little Precious?

I am the master. Without my clicks, without my visiting them and viewing their ads, they ain't squat.

You really are quite the MENSA member, aren't you?


90 posted on 02/01/2005 11:13:30 AM PST by JoJo Gunn (More than two lawyers in any Country constitutes a terrorist organization. ©)
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To: Doohickey

Not at all. MS is free to ply their trade far and wide as far as I'm concerned. I just will go out of my way NOT to use it, as the over-priced, bloated products they sell are generally sub-standard to anything else on the market. After wrestling a weekend away with MS Money 2005, I have decided the less MS the better. And now, with Pocket PC support coming to Gentoo Linux, I'm hoping to be MS-free by the spring. I'm sure they will still make billions upon billions of dollars without my patronage, and that's just fine with me.


91 posted on 02/01/2005 11:15:42 AM PST by Space Wrangler
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To: JoJo Gunn
Without my clicks, without my visiting them and viewing their ads, they ain't squat.

Before this thread, I didn't know they were still around.

BTW--didja know that Kwasi's new pride--MSN Search--runs on Linux? Evidently they don't trust Windows to keep up with the hoped-for traffic.

92 posted on 02/01/2005 11:16:54 AM PST by ShadowAce (Linux -- The Ultimate Windows Service Pack)
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To: wogworld

MSN = M$-AOL. What a turd MSN software is.


93 posted on 02/01/2005 11:18:50 AM PST by Space Wrangler
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To: HamiltonJay
"... GOOGLE is a VERB in our language now"

So is "Netscaped" meaning to get clobbered by Microsoft by coming in from behind. :)

"well there's MSNBC, MS MONEY, X BOX"

Ummm # 1 you are repeating yourself with that MS Money.
You mentioned it up there like 10 times already, remember?
After all did ask for something new.

#2, MSNBC cable channel has been profitable for years, and the MSNBC web site was the # 1 new site on the Internet for many years.

and # 3,the XBOX just made a profit this last quarter, and the XBOX has already overtaken Nintendo Gamecube, even after Nintendo has been in the console market for close to 20 years.
Makes Google look like neophyte.
94 posted on 02/01/2005 11:19:56 AM PST by KwasiOwusu
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To: HamiltonJay

Have you tried the new MS money. Its at least equal to the latest quicken


95 posted on 02/01/2005 11:21:51 AM PST by sanchez810
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To: JoJo Gunn
"I am the master"

LMAO!
Master?
Sorry.
You are a little worm.
Worms don't count. :)
96 posted on 02/01/2005 11:21:52 AM PST by KwasiOwusu
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To: JoJo Gunn

What's truly unfortunate is that Microsoft did actually built it properly at http://search.msn.com, but it's hidden so 90% of their websites users will never find it. If they had scrapped their "new and improved" msn.com homepage in favor of the streamlined one at search.msn.com, I might have given more credence to their efforts. Heck, they could even have their "news" link go to their old page for the people that want it, while giving most of their searchers a simple, fast interface.

The problem is that MS, like most huge corporations, is actually run by program and department managers with competing views of what "should" be offered in their products, and just about everything they crank out is a compromise. I'm sure that there were people at MS who wanted the search.msn.com interface to be the default, but I'd bet good money that they were shot down by the departments responsible for collecting and publishing those "news" articles, and from the ad sales department who wanted their ads front and center. Rather than look at the best solution for the user, they were interested in preserving their own glory and departmental importance.

Google doesn't have that problem, and their management is far more centralized so these types of fubars don't happen. MS needs to take a page from the Google playbook and realize that they need to put the USER first, not their employees or profits. Built it, and the users will come. Built it right, and the users will come with profit. As they have built it, I don't see MSN search being noted for anything other than an "Also Ran" in the Search wars (which is tragic, because the search localization feature is actually pretty nifty).


97 posted on 02/01/2005 11:23:26 AM PST by Arthalion
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To: Space Wrangler
"MSN = M$-AOL. What a turd MSN software is"

Typically nonsensical outpouring from an open source crazy.
But hey, what is new?
98 posted on 02/01/2005 11:24:06 AM PST by KwasiOwusu
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To: KwasiOwusu

Nintendo's target market has always been kids to 18 tops... Hasn't been or aimed at being #1 since the early 90s... glad to see you can keep up with the kiddie console.


MSNBC Profitable, and dead last in the ratings.. and as for their web site.. KEY word in your statment... WAS... and only was because every local NBC affilliate had their local news posted there, now that that is no longer the case... they are in the toilet too.

XBOX.. just made its first quarter profit? Wow.. its running on all cylinders now...

.NET Portal... another great winner (snicker) from MS.

Sorry, MS is not this unstoppable juggernaut that always wins... It doesn't. SQLServer nowhere near #1 DB.. Oracle isn't running scared... Passport is being dumped and frankly never got off the ground.... MS Money, never has or will outsell Quicken.. MSNBC has the same Viewership as a rerun of an XFL game....

This everything MS touches is Golden is nonsense. They have had more than a few stinkers and have been beaten in the marketplace, particularly in the internet arena many a time...


Keep shilling though... dance for those dollars.. earn that paycheck this week.


99 posted on 02/01/2005 11:27:11 AM PST by HamiltonJay
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To: KwasiOwusu
I suspect them to do something really stupid like bring up WORD everytime you do a search
or spell checker.

I'm not a MS basher but they do need a slap from time to time.

100 posted on 02/01/2005 11:32:19 AM PST by Zathras
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