To the surprise of many, Microsoft canceled the development of its tablet computer “Courier” yesterday. This was expected to rival the far from perfect iPad and seemed to come much closer to a viable, usable alternative distinct from smartphone or laptop. Many are now wondering what this means for Microsoft‘s future in tablet computing.
This tweet by @mollywood sums up the concern of many:
What! The! Hell!? Microsoft cancels Courier? Why, because it looked too awesome? If true, MS is beyond help.
The thing is, Courier was never announced officially by Microsoft, although many say it had been completed by the end of last year and expected it to be released later this year. It’s of course likely that the powerful launch of the iPad put Microsoft off and that they were concerned about competing in this already crowded market (with their existing tablets as well as the HP Windows 7 tablet).
But perhaps Courier never really existed and this buzz was all just a big marketing stunt.
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Posted by Andy Trainer in News, Sales & Marketing on April 30th, 2010| 3 Comments »
Does Google rule the world?
Google handles 80% of European web searches, according to ComScore, compared to 65% in the US. Does this give Google a Monopoly over search - and more importantly the advertising revenue that search engines attract?
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This week there has been a enquiry by the European Commission into three separate allegations that Google’s ‘so called’ democratic style search is being adapted by Google . They claim that Google are demoting competing websites in favour of their own services in the search results. Google will sometimes insert links into results offering its own own specialist services – news, price comparison, maps or book search. Competitors claim this diverts traffic away from rival services.
The commission has sent out questionnaires seeking information about complaints from a British vertical search company called Foundem, a French legal search engine called eJustice and the shopping site, Ciao, which is owned by Microsoft.
Many SEO and Search companies will be rejoicing in the fact that the commission is taking the issue seriously. This enquiry should shake up Google – who will be aware that the commission has previously levied huge financial penalties on Microsoft and Intel in recent years for using tactics to squash competing software.
Google is claiming that the attack has been orchestrated by Microsoft, which recently merged its search business with Yahoo’s in an effort to challenge Google. They have pointed out Microsoft’s interest in Foundem - which is part of a trade grouping sponsored by Microsoft called the “Initiative for a Competitive Online Marketplace” – and also their ownership of Ciao. Read the rest of "Google Monopoly questioned by the European Commission"
Posted by Heather Buckley in News, Sales & Marketing, Social Media on March 1st, 2010| 4 Comments »
Since Microsoft launched its new Bing search engine out of the ashes of Windows Live back in May, it hasn’t made many inroads on Google‘s dominance of the search market.
That could be set to change, if a new deal between Microsoft and media giant News Corp announced today comes to fruition. In a bold move, Microsoft has held discussions with Rupert Murdoch’s firm around a deal which could see News Corp “de-index” its news sites from Google, granting exclusivity to Bing.
News Corp owns some of the world biggest newspapers, including the New York Post and The Wall Street Journal in the USA, and The Sun, The Times and the News of the World in the UK.
If information is power (which it certainly is when it comes to seach engines) – this move to effectively censor the information Google can display in its SERPS could be a key move in winning market share for Bing. Market share for Bing is currently around 10-12%, which is embarrasing compared to Google’s share of over 50%.
In terms of service – at present Bing doesn’t really offer anything that Google doesn’t already have. This new line of attack is about taking away from Google, rather than adding anything new or innovative to Bing.
Rupert Murdoch has made his intent to charge for online content clear for some time, using the argument that “quality journalism doesn’t come cheap”. Most major newspapers currently publish the majority of their content online for free, which has had a major impact on sales of papers from newsagents.
The argument over for whether news should be made availalbe free online or not will continue, but what is clear is that if the way we consume our news online moves to a “paid-for” model, the search engine with the publishing rights to the major players’ content will hold a distinct advantage.
Could this be the beginning of a turn in the tide for Bing’s fortunes?
Let us know your thoughts on this…
Posted by Andy Trainer in News on November 23rd, 2009| No Comments »
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Posted by Alistair Wylie in News on August 20th, 2008| No Comments »
