Microsoft (MSFT) Goes After Google (GOOG) In Search?

Microsoft (MSFT) currently only has about 10% of the search market in the US. Google (GOOG) has closer to 50%.

Perhaps Microsoft is not going to take all of this anymore while turtled on its back. According to TechCruch, the world’s largest software company is putting together a team of several hundred engineers to build its next-generation search product. Microsoft has the head of the team that built the company’s Live applications heading the new effort.

If Microsoft can sharply improve the effectiveness of its search product, it may not matter. As The New York Times worte Google is constantly improving its core offering.

Microsoft is also faced with the inertia of a typical web user. Internet consumers have come to believe that Google has the best search features. Convincing them otherwise will be very hard.

Douglas A. McIntyre can be reached at [email protected]. He does not own securities in companies that he writes about.