Google: Bing Is Cheating, Copying Our Search Results

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According to this article Google is claiming that Bing is copying its search results.

Google has run a sting operation that it says proves Bing has been watching what people search for on Google, the sites they select from Google’s results, then uses that information to improve Bing’s own search listings. Bing doesn’t deny this.
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Actually from the article it seems that MS is looking at which google results people click, and tries to promote those.
It seems perfectly logical and acceptable to me...
 
Seriously, I would be worried if MS didn't do this. Google need a tissue?
 
Other than the fact that the level of tracking MS and Google are able to do of users is incredibly creepy, this seems more like smart business practices than anything else. Hi Google, meet Competition.
 
Good for Microsoft! We the users benefit from competition and Google could use some of that in the search game.

I might even be tempted to try Bing on a more regular basis if they had something similar to Google's ability to search through "discussions". I use that all the time.
 
If google knows this... why don't they try to send bing down the wrong path?
 
LeninGHOLA said:
Seriously, I would be worried if MS didn't do this. Google need a tissue?
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Holy double standards batman. Are you kidding me? If MS claimed Google did this without posting a shred of evidence people would have torces and pitchforks screaming for Google's head. MS does it and people claim that it is not only acceptable but obvious that they would do it? wtf?

Hell, the level of tracking that Google just busted IE doing is *insane*. People scream bloody murder at Google over privacy issues that aren't even true, but MS gets busted tracking everything you do on another site and everyone is cool with it?


TwistedAegis said:
Other than the fact that the level of tracking MS and Google are able to do of users is incredibly creepy, this seems more like smart business practices than anything else. Hi Google, meet Competition.
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What competition? You go to Google, you get results from Google. You go to Bing, you get results from Google. The entire point is that MS is *NOT* competing, just copying.
 
What competition? You go to Google, you get results from Google. You go to Bing, you get results from Google. The entire point is that MS is *NOT* competing, just copying.
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That's not what's happening at all. Ignoring the fact that most of the copying has been in the opposite direction (other than Instant Search, almost every change to the layout and functionality of Google Search in the last 2 years has been ripped off Bing), this article just claims that MS is using the results Google users click on (not the full list of stuff Google returns) to tune their selections.
 
The last few paragraphs raise an interesting point. Do we really care about the "voice", or do we just want relevant search results? I can't say I care, I only ever use Google. But lol @ "BING Is Now Google"... on to one "voice" I guess...
 
The difference here is people already associate a little evilness to MSFT already. No big deal.

Google on the other hand, has a company slogan of "Don't be evil", so it would be different if they were the cheaters.
 
Raged said:
If google knows this... why don't they try to send bing down the wrong path?
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Thats kind of what they did, on a controlled basis. To do it on a large scale would (seem to) be impossible and it would impact the quality of their own search results.
 
So thats why Scott Hanselman (MSFT Dev) always says he's going to bing Google.
 
In other news Egypt is still burning, Jordan is getting a new government, and Chicago is due 25 inches of snow in next 24 hours. Oh and the sky is still blue and water is still wet. Film at 11!

Seriously though...who gives a shit. I'd say the same thing if it was Google doing it to Bing. I use both search engines to being with. I find they both do certain searches better then the other.

As stated above: Hello competition!
 
Shorehn said:
Good for Microsoft! We the users benefit from competition and Google could use some of that in the search game.

I might even be tempted to try Bing on a more regular basis if they had something similar to Google's ability to search through "discussions". I use that all the time.
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how do you do that? My methods have not been very satisfactory.
 
So what microsoft wants more data on what people search and click on, they aren't used as much as google so what do you do. Promote yourself to get more users? hell no just take the results from people who visited google much easier.
 
kllrnohj said:
Holy double standards batman. Are you kidding me? If MS claimed Google did this without posting a shred of evidence people would have torces and pitchforks screaming for Google's head. MS does it and people claim that it is not only acceptable but obvious that they would do it? wtf?

Hell, the level of tracking that Google just busted IE doing is *insane*. People scream bloody murder at Google over privacy issues that aren't even true, but MS gets busted tracking everything you do on another site and everyone is cool with it?




What competition? You go to Google, you get results from Google. You go to Bing, you get results from Google. The entire point is that MS is *NOT* competing, just copying.
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I disagree with everything you have said. There is no double standard here, I'm fine with Google doing the same to Bing. I'm sorry, but part of competition is figuring out exactly how the other guy does so well. Let's not even get into reverse engineering in manufacturing.

Your second point is a serious misunderstanding of what competition means. Bing and Google are in competition for search share, and MS is trying to bolster their share by seeing what people search for on a competitors engine.
 
Parmenides said:
how do you do that? My methods have not been very satisfactory.
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Click on the "More" tab on the left on your search results and then choose Discussions. It searches only through forums, Yahoo Answers, newsgroups, et cetera.

I use it so often I couldn't imagine doing without it.
 
kllrnohj said:
Holy double standards batman. Are you kidding me? If MS claimed Google did this without posting a shred of evidence people would have torces and pitchforks screaming for Google's head. MS does it and people claim that it is not only acceptable but obvious that they would do it? wtf?

Hell, the level of tracking that Google just busted IE doing is *insane*. People scream bloody murder at Google over privacy issues that aren't even true, but MS gets busted tracking everything you do on another site and everyone is cool with it?

What competition? You go to Google, you get results from Google. You go to Bing, you get results from Google. The entire point is that MS is *NOT* competing, just copying.
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Actually it is not insane at all.

MS has two tools that you can CHOOSE to use or not. If you CHOOSE to use them then a teeny bit of extra info on your browsing choices gets sent back to MS to be aggregated with all the other info they have from everyone else that has opted-in so they can provide a better user experience. Google, Yahoo, and everyone else with a toolbar or browser does the exact same thing if you OPT-IN. This is not a big deal.

And as to the data they gather, it amount to this:

I type a search term into Google, Suggested Sites or Bing Toolbar records this for MS.
I click on the first result from that search. Suggested Sites or Bing Toolbar records this for MS.
1000 other people do the same thing in any given search engine and it is recorded in the same way for MS.

Later on someone else searches for that same term on Bing. Bing searches through its massive database of information and sees that there is a strong correlation between people searching for that term (in any search tool) and the next site those people visit being that same first result from the search on Google. Therefore it returns that site, as clearly people searching for that term are looking for that site.

It isn't rocket science, it is people CHOOSING to report information to MS, and MS using that information in the most direct and obvious way possible.
 
It seems to me that if Google has proof that Bing (MS) is doing this then they could have grounds for a lawsuit against Microsoft.
 
Roberty said:
It seems to me that if Google has proof that Bing (MS) is doing this then they could have grounds for a lawsuit against Microsoft.
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Based on what exactly? Collecting search information, the same thing every search engine does? The same thing Google does every day in multiple ways through multiple programs and devices?

Collecting search and browsing information to produce better results in a search engine is common practice and as far as I am concerned, smart business. If you are trying to make the best search engine, then you want to spread your net wide to find the most sites that match certain search criteria.

Seriously, Google has been so shady on this subject for soo many years now, it is hypocrisy that they would try to call out someone else for using similar tactics.
 
Raged said:
If google knows this... why don't they try to send bing down the wrong path?
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Cause to do so would also send you down the path they don't want you to follow either.

So, they can eliminate this issue and in turn piss you off, or, MS can continue to do what MS has done best for its entire history. Eat up, take from, and destroy the competition. Ballmar isn't a dummy, he knows what he's doing.
 
NoOther said:
Based on what exactly? Collecting search information, the same thing every search engine does? The same thing Google does every day in multiple ways through multiple programs and devices?
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There are lawsuits everyday over stuff a LOT more silly things than this.
 
This really isn't a healthy way to improve a search engine. It's very shortsighted and lacks any depth.

But it seems like American culture is okay with that as long as there's results.
 
Dreaz said:
This really isn't a healthy way to improve a search engine. It's very shortsighted and lacks any depth.

But it seems like American culture is okay with that as long as there's results.
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How is it short sighted? It takes the most commonly clicked URLs for that search and puts them first. It's not necessarily changing Bing's search results. It's just reorganizing the results so the most commonly clicked ones via Bing/Google and probably all other search engines are brought to the top. Sounds like a good idea to me as those sites most likely have the data I'm looking for.
 
Not surprising considering Ms has never had an original idea in their entire existence....

Even DOS was a ripoff of Seattle Computer Products Q-DOS...

Ever since Microsofts strategy has been to watch others, learn, and then copy it and incorporate it into their products. Kind of sleazy really...
 
Bing sucks, they only win with their travel (flexible search) gadget on their site.

Other than that, google owns it hard in every which way, besides looking pretty. This is one of those things where function is definitely better than form.

Bing seems to be trying to be a wannabe google since Day 1, trying hard, advertising/spamming VERY hard and yet still failing pretty obviously. I would rather not explain why and make it easy for the lazy fucks at Microsoft who should soon be fired, but everyone else surely agrees here that bing sucks....
 
Dylan80 said:
Bing sucks, they only win with their travel (flexible search) gadget on their site.

Other than that, google owns it hard in every which way, besides looking pretty. This is one of those things where function is definitely better than form.

Bing seems to be trying to be a wannabe google since Day 1, trying hard, advertising/spamming VERY hard and yet still failing pretty obviously. I would rather not explain why and make it easy for the lazy fucks at Microsoft who should soon be fired, but everyone else surely agrees here that bing sucks....
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Oh look there's a fanboy raging like a typical apple fanboy.
 
Dylan80 said:
Bing sucks, they only win with their travel (flexible search) gadget on their site.

Other than that, google owns it hard in every which way, besides looking pretty. This is one of those things where function is definitely better than form.

Bing seems to be trying to be a wannabe google since Day 1, trying hard, advertising/spamming VERY hard and yet still failing pretty obviously. I would rather not explain why and make it easy for the lazy fucks at Microsoft who should soon be fired, but everyone else surely agrees here that bing sucks....
Click to expand...
Did you not read the thread? There are people that likes to use Bing just fine. Hell, I use it occasionally.
 
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