14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft seems committed to spread the Live Search wealth around and, in this regard, debuted a number of initiatives designed to offer financial incentives in exchange for user queries. In addition to the Live Search Club and the Live Search Cashback programs, the Redmond giant is also making donations to charities and schools around the world via Search and Give. Christine Andrews, Product Manager, Search and Give applauded the success of the program, which gathered over $250,000 over the past year, all from user searches. The money collected via Search and Give is redirected toward local schools and non-profit organizations around the world.
"Over the course of the year the program generated cash donations for more than 20,000 organizations ranging from schools to non-profits such as Doctors without Borders and ASPCA (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals). Today we've launched the latest version of the program that includes a new, easy-to-use design with enhanced features and more flexible donation capabilities," Andrews stated.
The way that Search and Give works is by enabling people to make donations without touching their wallet. In fact, Microsoft is willing to cough up the money, as long as users introduce their queries into Search and Give. Of course, that aside, Search and Give is nothing else than Live Search. In this regard, the Redmond giant is still paying users in order to increase its share on the search engine market, albeit in a manner more subtle than Live Search Club and Live Search Cashback. Additionally, this initiative fits perfectly into the company's culture of giving, the program having cumulated donations of more than $300,000 since its debut in September 2007.
"By signing up at Search and Give, consumers can start donating one cent per search to more than 100,000 schools and 900,000 non-profit organizations worldwide every time they use the Live Search to find whatever interests them. People can also convert tickets they've earned playing games on Microsoft's Live Search Club, into donations for those same schools or charities," Andrews added.