Following in the footsteps of Google, and after seeing the report of Outsell, Live Search News of MSN has began to show press releases in its results. On the other hand AOL News has stopped doing that. The trend of showing press release as news source was started by Google in September of 2002 and was followed by Yahoo! News in March 2004. Ask.com News Search and Topix.net followed suit.
MSN
Microsoft is using Google platform to promote its products. According to Google BlogoScoped, Microsoft is advertising its Live Search on Google. The Google search page has a link of a MOV file. By clicking the link, you land on MSN search page.
Mobile search is fast catching up with millions of phone and PDA users around the world. Microsoft filed a patent for "Mobile friendly internet searches" in September this year. The patent stated that:
Unfortunately, many websites have pages that are not accommodating to mobile devices. Accordingly, there is a need for schemes, mechanisms, techniques, etc. that can accommodate mobile devices in the arena of internet searches and/or the field of search services.
Microsoft introduced their search engine, Live Search in 2006 and and its users have searched the Web extensively for their various queries. A list of all the top 10 queries and searches in 2006 has been put together by Live Search based on most searched queries by its users in every region and country.
Baidu and Microsoft anounced a strategic alliance on paid serach service. Under the alliance Microsoft willl display Baidu's paid search listings on the SERPs of certain Microsoft websites, including MSN, Live, and other partner websites in China.
According to the press release :
Microsoft has announced the launch of beta version of Live Search Books. The General Manager of Live Search Selection for Microsoft said that the book search engine will perform keyword search for books that have been scanned as part of Microsoft's book scanning project in a manner similar to Windows Live Search search.
Windows Live has announced the launch of search beta for mobile devices. In fact, there are three new ways to search from your cell phone. Now you can find closest toy store or a coffee shop and even diresctions to a friends place.
Live Search's Weblog announced
Remember, a couple of months ago Google told us how to verify Googlebot. It explained verification requires a reverse DNS look up which is followed by a forward DNS lookup.
Microsoft has introduced similar verification method for MSNBot. Live Search's Weblog explains: "anyone could call themselves ‘MSNBot’, and proceed to be as rude and aggressive as they like. Fortunately, there is a way you can catch these impersonators. Here is how it works:
Microsoft has released a new update for MSN Live.com search product. At WebmasterWorld, senior member, crobb305 stated: " I see some changes today. The blogspot crap seems to have been reduced a bit. In the top 20, on a financial term I watch, I only see 4 blogspots, versus 8+ a few days ago. Maybe others can confirm that it is indeed an "update". Certainly a step in the right direction."
It seems that Microsoft Small Business Directory has been closed. Matt McGee reports that when you go to the Add your site page and click on the required link it takes to another page which says:
As of November 15, 2006 Microsoft will no longer accept new sign-ups for select Microsoft Online Small Business Services.
@pagetraffic
