The Bing to Google Dog Fight Continues (GOOG, YHOO, MSFT, IACI)

Google Inc.(NASDAQ: GOOG) is far from losing its stranglehold on the U.S. search market.  Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) is also far from being able to reclaim much market share that it has lost in internet search.  Yet Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) is still getting some acceptance of Bing.

Google’s January share of U.S. search fell to 71.49% from 72.25% in December for a 1% share drop.

Yahoo! search’s January share of U.S. search fell to 14.57% from 14.83% in December for a 1% share drop.

Microsoft’s Bing saw its January share of U.S. search rise to 8.92% from 9.37%, which is 5% on its change in market share.

IAC/InterActiveCorp. (NASDAQ: IACI) is still there with its distant #4 share of search with its Ask, the former AskJeeves… with a small gain to boot.  It took back 4% from December as the January figure rose to 2.64% from 2.54% of US search.

The remaining 65 search engines commanded a whopping 1.93% share of search.

Google is still the top dog and it is not even a fair dog fight yet.  Even Michael Vick couldn’t influence this dog fight.  Our guess is that as long as Google maintains 70% then it is more than satisfied.

JON C. OGG
FEBRUARY 10, 2010