Bing Search Continues to Bang Away at Google's Lead

Microsoft's new search engine Bing continues to take small but steady steps towards chipping away at Google. Since its release in June, Bing has inch by inch racked up increasing market percentages each month, with August being no exception.

Last month it was reported that Microsoft's short but impressive gains for July moved to 8.9 per cent of the total market, according to research firm ComScore. That was up nearly an entire percentage point from the days of Live Search, the name bequeathed to Microsoft's search engine before the arrival of the more cutting-edge Bing mid-summer.

Bing Surpasses MS Live Market Share

As mentioned, August too was a good month for Microsoft. Although ComScore's statistics haven't yet been released, according to JPMorgan, Bing increased another half-percentage point during the month. That leaves Bing with a 9.3 per cent market share, significantly higher than the 8 per cent claimed by Live Search back in May. (Source: reuters.com)

In order to unearth the kind of growth Bing has experienced in the last month, one must consider the engine's popularity independently. According to data released by Nielson earlier this month, Bing search volume climbed 22.1 per cent in August, an astounding leap that makes it the fastest-growing search engine and a legitimate dark horse in a race previously not worth following.

Bing: Keeping it Simple

Part of Bing's allure is its fresh look and the brand name behind it. Microsoft hopes to revolutionize the search engine market, which it feels is currently over-saturated with too many irrelevant results. Microsoft promises it will reveal at least two major updates for Bing every year, a promise that may do more than just keep Google on its toes.

Rumors have it that Bing 2.0 (due in the near future) and is something to admire. After receiving a sneak preview of 2.0 at a special company meeting recently, Microsoft employees were so wowed that they immediately took to Twitter in order to express their excitement. (Source: crn.com)

Take that with a grain of salt, but it's nice to see someone come along promising something more than just special News, Book, or Map tools -- instead, a refinement of the plain, 'ol basic information search function.