Microsoft has drastically overhauled the MSN butterfly logo and the portal that goes along with it, but not all of the website’s 600 million visitors per month will be able to enjoy the changes. The Redmond company has limited the MSN redesign, which it catalogued as the most significant MSN home page revamp in over a decade, only to users in the United States, which, according to statistics, rise to approximately 100 million. A preview of the new MSN home page is already live and accessible to users around the world, while for people outside the US, the actual MSN home page will continue to look the same as it did until now.

We also included the new logo and a screenshot with the redesigned MSN portal in this article, in order to help you get an idea of just what Microsoft is trying to sell its customers. There's little doubt that the new design is, by far, an improvement over the old MSN style, offering a fresh approach, less cluttered content, while simplifying navigation for visitors. Less complexity, in this regard, is synonymous with an increased focus on delivering information, and making the offered content more user-friendly.

“More than half of people online start their sessions on sites like MSN and they told us they want simplicity — yet still want the latest information and their favorite services delivered together,” noted Lisa Gurry, senior director, MSN. “With our large audience and sophisticated technology, we were able to gather a tremendous amount of customer feedback to ensure we delivered the online experience customers are really craving.”

Microsoft is not making any secret of the fact that MSN is one of the major traffic pillars for its Bing search/decision engine. According to the software giant, no less than 45% of all Bing users come from the MSN portal. In this context, the deep integration between Bing and the overhauled MSN home page is set up to solidify the Bing – MSN bridge.

In addition, Microsoft has tailored the revamped MSN home page to the needs of social networking users. MSN now allows users to easily sign into Windows Live, Facebook or Twitter right from the home page.

“Now is the time to clean up the mess on the Web — people need less clutter and less hassle to find what matters most to them,” said Erik Jorgensen, corporate vice president, Microsoft. “Microsoft is uniquely invested in search, media experiences and technical innovation. Combining these assets to deliver our new MSN home page is a tremendous win for customers and advertisers.”