You guys dont have any clue at howmuch advertising revenue is made with online search.

Microsoft does well with display advertising since they have MSN homepage as well as other popular sites with lots of impressions. However search easily makes 60% of the advertising dollars spent online. And google gets 80% of that...

If microsoft takes 20% marketshare from google, it equals few billion dollars extra per year.

They have nothing to lose by trying.

"The average iPhone user is going to be more sophisticated and better educated than the average PC user and so 'switching back' will be a behaviour many would likely engage in," said Search Engine Land's Mr Sterling.

I think that says it all.

Mike from Morgantown

I'll tell that to my mom, the local teenagers, and the rabbi.

I know a LOT of...uneducated people...showing off their iphones videoz playaz and appzz YO!

Not sure if that statement is accurate

Microsoft HAVE been taken down a peg or two lately.

Too bad Bing sucks :/ I'm sure most people will just switch it back to google.

Only for americans.

For other countries, bing sucks alot.

I understand where you're coming from, but the average PC user is still using IE 6. IE8 has almost overtaken it, but still...

More on topic, I thought it was interesting that Apple is getting colder and colder with Google and warmer with MS. MS and Apple are old rivals, but they do know how to deal with each other and they know where they stand with each other. Google and Apple are both targeting the same markets to drive their future growth, so they aren't feeling as chummy right now.

The rumour mill notes that Apple is setting up a huge data center which is expected to serve content in Apple's media stores, but which some think could be used by Apple to launch their own search engine. This is supported by Apple's recent acquisition of mobile ad company Quattro. So the theory is that Apple is moving to Bing to buy some time before launching Spotlight as a full internet search engine and joining the fray in the searches and ads market.

With the expectation that Apple will soon add books to the music, videos, and apps that it already sells, it's easy to see why Apple would want to offer content creators a way to market their wares alongside a way to sell them.

You know, its been like pulling teeth with me but what you stated is TRUTH.  Bing is really great.  I've recently switched it to my default search engine and homepage.

Now Google is still very useful, especially considering the services that they offer, but for pure searching I now Bing and you should too.

This'll get even more interesting once WinMo7 is ready to go and, if MS/phone manufacturers/carriers have any sense, is debuted on a phone that can compete with the likes of the iPhone and Droid.  Suddenly Bing will be all over the mobile space.

Google is being seen as a larger threat than Microsoft now, so there is fighting against it.

As for what is superior, I find Bing is ok, but appears to be too noisy for my taste. Google gives me what I need when I am trying to look up this or that. I get what I need when I do it, without too much color. Maybe it is because I am use to it.