Search engine competition
Fear of competition: Microsoft imitates Google search
January 7, 2025 – 2:36 p.mReading time: 2 min.
In order not to lose users of its search engine Bing to Google, Microsoft is simply imitating the competing site. Google is not happy.
Almost every internet user is familiar with Google search. Microsoft’s search engine called Bing is probably less well known. The latest figures show Bing has a market share of almost three percent – Google searches have around 90 percent. That means: 9 out of 10 searches take place there.
This apparently annoys Microsoft so much that the company has decided to simply imitate the competition’s search engine in order not to lose users. The US magazine “Windows Latest” first reported this. Accordingly, Microsoft fakes the Google user interface when Bing users search for the competing search engine.
Or to put it another way: Anyone who searches for the terms “Google” or “Google.com” on Bing will receive a search window that looks like a Google search. This can happen, for example, when Windows users search for Google using Microsoft’s Edge browser. The company has activated Bing search in its Edge browser by default.
Microsoft does not use the familiar Google lettering in the search results, but displays a graphic above the search field that is reminiscent of the competition’s drawings called Google Doodle – in this case it is of people partying. The white background is also reminiscent of Google search. The actual search results only come further down.
The problem: Inexperienced Internet users might think they have landed on Google and no longer on Microsoft’s search engine Bing. Anyone who searches for terms in the search field actually stays on Bing and is not automatically redirected to Google. So maximum confusion.
Google has now commented on the redesign of the Bing search. Google Chrome boss Parisa Tabriz writes on the short message service X: “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.” The fact that Microsoft is faking the Google homepage is another tactic used by the company to confuse users and limit the selection of search engines.
The US magazine “The Verge” has published a list of tricks that Microsoft has often used to try to prevent users from using other products. In one example, the Edge browser is said to have imported the bookmarks from Google Chrome without informing the user.