Yahoo’s search technology is out at Microsoft and its homegrown search solution is now powering MSN Search.
The commercial search sale industry is expected to be worth about $5 billion this year. No wonder Microsoft wants a bigger share than its current approximate 10 percent of that pie. The new launch will be supported with a new ad campaign that will include television, print, Internet and outdoor promotions.
MSN Search brings some interesting new features to the table: Apart from its searches across some 5 billion documents, users will be able to search the Microsfot Encarta Encyclopedia, run mathematical equations and use plain english to ask questions.
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.
It has reportedly cost Microsoft $100 million to launch the new MSN Search.
Try it out for yourselves: MSN Search.