MSN set to dominate search engines by next year?

[newsguy]

MSN has released their search engine to the world now (if not completely). Microsoft has a lot of ca$h to backup their enterprises.

Does anybody here think that MSN will be a real challenge to Google's search engine dominanace in the coming year?

[newsguy]

Regarding the likelyhood of MSN search dominance, I failed to ask the question that I was really getting at:

Should I spend more time optimizing for MSN now and a little less on Google? Is MSN's search going to be popular enough to warrant that?

Thanks. :)

[Farhan]

Newsguy,
I've moved your posts and merged them into one thread as it's more relevant to this forum. Thanks.

[french dread]

In my opinion, Google still will be the 1st search engine for some years. Though, I think it will loose some marketshare, to the benefit of MSN and Yahoo. I hope.

[Quadrille]

Too soon, too soon ....

It's much too soon to hazard a serious guess on the success of M$N's baby; thery have the money, they have IE and windows to promote it, but they also have a pretty poor reputation on the web, and in recent years Google's marketing has made them look like amateurs.

And it's unlikely that the technology - even if it's superior - will be a big enough advance to Whack Google. And if it's a long drawn out campaign, my money's on Google as a company genuinely committed to innovation, rather than 'protecting its position'.

But we'll see.

It's also too soon to worry overmuch about optimizing specifically; whatever we're seeing now will change, but how and where? Who knows? Certainly worth monitoring and 'preparing' ... but way to soon to even consider changing a content or linking strategy.

And don't forget Y!; always the bridesmaid, never the bride :)

Google took over because it was visibly and functionally a class ahead; M$N has yet to do that. Google (So far!) has kept distortion of serps for $$$ to a minimum; even in Beta, M$N plasters sponsored links top, bottom and Righthandside, plus their own M$ ads above the Search Result (http://beta.search.msn.com/results.aspx?q=beatles&FORM=QBHP). they are far from home and dry yet!