|
November 10, 2006
After what's felt like eons of slim release pickin's, Microsoft appears to be back on track for getting new products pushed out the door. Of particular interest to those in online marketing and advertising should be the release of Internet Explorer 7 and the upcoming release of Windows Vista. Internet Explorer 7, available to consumers now, is the first update to Microsoft's de facto web browser in years. In addition to new features, increased security, and a new interface, IE 7 sports a new way of handling internet search. Much like Mozilla's Firefox, IE 7 allows users to install additional search engines into its toolbar-integrated search box. But for those users who either don't know how or don't care, IE 7 comes pre-loaded with… wait for it… Windows Live (formerly MSN) as the one and only default search engine. Can you blame Microsoft? Not at all. If Google released a web browser you know it'd be chalk full of Google tools and services, too. Although it's market share has declined a bit as of late, Internet Explorer still holds more than 80% of the web browser market share. What does this mean for marketers and advertisers? It means you'd better check your Windows Live ranking. Folks using Windows XP with automatic updating turned on are already getting IE 7 installed. Others will download it directly or find it while browsing around Windows Update. And with partners like Yahoo! advertising Internet Explorer 7 for them, Microsoft will no doubt get IE 7 out to millions of users in a matter of months. When you factor in the January 2007 release of Windows Vista, there are going to be a lot of folks out there using Internet Explorer 7 and, therefore, Windows Live for their internet searching needs. In a matter of months, every new PC sold with Windows installed with, at least initially, point users to Windows Live. Ready yourself now. Double-check your Windows Live listing. Will 2007 be the year of Windows Live search? It's quite possible. Better to be safe today than sorry next year.
Comments:
4 Comments posted on "IE 7 + Windows Vista = The Year of Windows Live?"
Headlines of Note for March 7, 2007 on March 7th, 2007 at 4:52 pm #
[…] According to Compete data, Live.com actually saw an increase in usage during the month of February. We pointed out in November that Windows Vista (coupled with IE7) should have an impact on Live.com's usage. And apparently that's what Compete is suggesting was behind the increase in traffic to Live.com. I have a feeling it can't be because of the search itself… because it's still pretty lousy. So I'm on board with Compete's analysis here. […]
Lenovo Computers to Ship With Windows Live Toolbar. Can Microsoft Compel New Users to Stay? on March 14th, 2007 at 9:53 am #
[…] Lenovo Computers to Ship With Windows Live Toolbar. Can Microsoft Compel New Users to Stay? Posted by Derick on March 14th, 2007 Microsoft should be seeing more traffic to its Live.com search engine these days. As we noted several months ago, the release of Internet Explorer 7 and Windows Vista, both of which push Live.com on users, has no doubt increased traffic to the service. And with yesterday's announcement that Lenovo would begin shipping its computers with a pre-installed Windows Live toolbar, that traffic boost should continue. Lenovo, which bought IBM's PC unit to become the third-largest PC manufacturer in the world, is the first PC manufacturer to make such an agreement with Windows Live, says the New York Times. In addition to the pre-installed toolbar, Lenovo computers will also ship with Microsoft's Live.com set as the default start page for Internet Explorer. Despite Live.com's less-than-stellar search results, all of the increased traffic should help Microsoft make up some search engine market share. Many people don't change the default start page of their web browser either because they don't know how or don't really care what it is. And toolbars can often look like integral parts of a web browser. So, again, many people don't uninstall or turn them off because they don't know the option exists. With Vista's integrated search, IE7's integrated search box, a Live.com start page, and a Windows Live toolbar, many Lenovo users are going to just assume that it's all part of the Windows experience… and use it without question. Sure… they may navigate to Google or Yahoo or Ask when their initial searches at Live.com fail to return the expected results. But I wonder how much this will play into Microsoft's future market share? Should we look at Live.com's usage with a grain of salt and a critical eye? Or, since users are users regardless of how they get there, should we just grant Microsoft's future market share the benefit of the doubt? If I was Microsoft, I'd be watching those numbers. If I had all of this increased exposure, and my search numbers continued to fall, I'd seriously start thinking about the true viability of my search offering. […]
Headlines of Note for July 9, 2007 on July 9th, 2007 at 3:20 pm #
[…] is now the other search engine other than Google to be up year-over-year. These numbers aren’t that big of a surprise to me. The question is whether Microsoft can keep users once the gimmicks wear off. […]
The Real Question For Microsoft: Can You Keep Visitors at Live.com? on July 16th, 2007 at 3:33 pm #
[…] As we’ve said before, this isn’t really that surprising. Live Search Club aside, Windows Vista and Internet Explorer are both driving users to MSN/Live.com. As Vista adoption continues to increase, so too should Microsoft’s search numbers… in theory. […] Post a comment
|
|
