Microsoft battles hard with Google, deals with Dell, Verizon

Las Vegas, United States, January 8: Microsoft is leaving no stone unturned to subdue the search king Google. After Lenovo and HP, Windows Live is to come preinstalled in new Dell computers and Verizon mobiles now, giving Live Search the much-needed boost.

The company has struck two extremely crucial deals with Dell Inc. and Verizon Wireless to regain some ground for its tattered search market base since it failed to crack merger deal with Yahoo Inc.

Microsoft is now being aggressive in getting a grip on its internet search business, which had slipped significantly to merely 8.3 percent in November, against 63.5 percent of Google and 20.4 percent of the number two, Yahoo, according to comScore Inc.

Microsoft’s senior vice president, Yusuf Mehdi, after receiving desired results from the search deals with Lenovo and HP, is confident that the new deals will promote its search service to even broader audience.

Mehdi said. “These two partnerships are very significant for us, because it...gives an opportunity to put our search offering out before a broader audience now in a pretty mainstream way, and I think you should think about it as the first step of us slowly bringing up the dial on how we start to promote our product.”

Mehdi said about the Verizon deal, “It's a big win for us and by far the largest search and mobile display relationship we've entered into with any mobile operator”.

Google has also been one upped as, reportedly, Microsoft had defeated the rival in bidding for the deal.

The fervor to strike back in the market is also apparent from the fact that the Dell and Verizon deals supposedly have come in exchange for hundreds of millions of dollars’ advertising revenue, which could be shared with the two companies, according to the analysts. However, no details have been revealed in this respect so far.

Besides, the enthusiastic company has also built its own ad-serving engine, after having acquired aQuantive, Inc., a digital advertising company, for $US 6 billion.

Microsoft, however, is not flying high over the deals, being aware of the long way ahead to appear stronger against Google. Plus, Dell’s deal with Microsoft is not exclusive, Dell having already accommodated Google’s search window in its hardware, way back in 2006.