14 DAY TRIAL // When it comes down to Microsoft’s search/decision engine, some users are “more equal than others.” The Redmond company’s focus on English-speaking markets is obvious, initially with US users becoming first-class citizens of Bing, and now with the decision engine shading its Beta tag for UK customers. But, outside of North America and the United Kingdom, Bing continues to be in Beta stage at approximately half a year after it was launched on the market killing Live Search in the process. But, in all fairness, Microsoft is laboring to provide localized versions of Bing, tailored specifically to markets around the world. The work on Bing UK is now finalized, with the Redmond company guaranteeing that the results returned to end users in the UK will be relevant.
“The daily Bing Homepage image and hotspots are something that now will be localized in the UK, with unique imagery and hotspots. Visual Search using visual images and metadata to make search more visual and more compelling. More Instant Answers. Get quick response answers and results to searches, such as how is Liverpool doing in the Premiership or which tourist attraction should I take my in-laws to at the weekend? See who or what is being chatted about real-time with a global live Twitter feed with Bing Twitter search,” Kristin Meldahl – Bing revealed.
As you can see in the image at the top of this article, Bing UK does feature wallpapers of locations on the island, with the background from November 13th revealing the Standing Stones at Avebury. Bing UK graduating from Beta to the RTW (release to web) development milestone is synonymous with the most consistent update that Microsoft has introduced to its search/decision engine since the July launch, including tapping the Wolfram Alpha computational engine.
“Looking for the best deals? - There is now an integrated shopping experience with Ciao UK. With Bing you can search the Internet to find the best prices, reviews and local availability,” Meldahl added. “With insights from our Multimap users, Bing Maps now offers new map styles, imagery and transit integration as well as draggable routes. Bing has been built for the UK to help consumers get to key local sites and services in fewer links by including popular links, search boxes and suggestions within best match.”