14 DAY TRIAL // This week, Microsoft announced a series of changes to its Bing Search API offering, including the fact that it will become available through the Windows Azure Marketplace.
The API will remain the same resource that developers can adopt to innovate and build upon, only that it will be offered through the Windows Azure app portal.
The application store promises fast access to cloud data, apps, and services, such as the Microsoft Translator API.
According to Microsoft, the platform will provide developers with access to hundreds of data sets and APIs. They will also be able to distribute their applications via the Marketplace.
Some of the things that developers should take note of regarding the transition include:
- With the transition, Bing Search API developers will have access to fresher results, improved relevancy, and more opportunities to monetize their usage of the Search API. To offer these services at scale, we plan to move to a monthly subscription model. Developers can expect subscription pricing to start at approximately $40 (USD) per month for up to 20,000 queries each month.
- The transition will begin in several weeks and will take a few months to complete. During the transition period, developers will be encouraged to try the Bing Search API for free on the Windows Azure Marketplace, before we begin charging for the service.
- At this time, you can continue using Bing Search API 2.0 free of charge. After the transition period, Bing Search API 2.0 will no longer be available for free public use, and instead developers can continue accessing the API on the Windows Azure Marketplace.
For the time being, there's no specific info on the transition timeline, pricing structure, and other changes, but the upcoming weeks should bring more light into the matter.
Until that happens, developers can explore the Windows Azure Marketplace to learn more on it, and are also encouraged to read the documentation on accessing data sets and APIs.
“As a Bing Search API developer, you can expect the transition to involve targeting a new API end point, moderate changes to the request and response schemas, and a new security requirement to authenticate your application key,” the Bing Development Team notes in a blog post.
They also explain that there will be a separate transition process available for developers using approximately 3 to 4 million queries and above. More info on the matter will become available soon.