Microsoft said on Thursday it is revamping its internet search operation and preparing to launch its own search engine later this year to compete directly with Google and Yahoo.
The immediate change will be a ”cleaner look” for its MSN Search page that separates paid and unpaid search results and provides direct links to Microsoft’s encyclopedia service.
This is the first step in a $100-million upgrade of the program, which will include a new Microsoft-owned search engine later this year.
Up to now, industry analysts say, Microsoft’s search uses the underlying engine developed by Yahoo and its Overture service.
Microsoft said it released a test version of its upcoming algorithmic search engine ”to gather feedback from webmasters and search enthusiasts”.
This will be launched, along with ”a range of other search services”, within the year.
”With this significant upgrade to MSN Search, we are delighted to now offer what we believe is the best search service available for the 350-million MSN customers,” said Yusuf Mehdi, corporate vice-president of the MSN division.
”Among the many improvements, we’re particularly excited to increase the relevancy of many search query results by up to 45%. This massive investment kicks off a wave of innovation from MSN that will move search beyond its current, limited offering to delivering the next-generation search experience.”
The move puts the world’s largest software company in direct competition with search leader Google, which is in the process of launching a stock offering, and Yahoo, which has moved away from using Google for its underlying search technology.
Based on the Google model, searching has become a profitable enterprise on the internet by targeting advertising to surfers based on the keywords they use for the search, often in the form of ”sponsored” or paid listings.
Thus, users searching for sporting goods might get, in addition to the standard search results, paid listings for sporting goods sellers. — Sapa-AFP