In a recent turn of events, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella highlighted a staggering reality: Google rakes in more revenue from Windows than Microsoft itself, thanks to its substantial hold over search and distribution channels. StatCounter’s latest numbers show Google towering over the search market with a formidable 89.74% share, leaving Microsoft’s Bing trailing with just 3.97%.
Last year, during Google’s antitrust hearing, Nadella pointed fingers at Google for allegedly playing dirty against Bing. He mentioned that Google’s exclusive ties with Apple severely stifle Bing’s growth and visibility. Now, it appears Microsoft might be resorting to some creative strategies to claw back some market share in the search arena.
Here’s where things get intriguing: try searching for “Google” on Bing without logging into your Microsoft account, and you’re met with a page eerily resembling Google’s style. According to The Verge, this seems to be a bold move by Microsoft to visually mimic Google, potentially deterring users from jumping ship.
A quick glimpse at the interface shows familiar Google-like elements, complete with a search bar and even a tweak on the Google Doodle. Tests by Windows Central confirm the similarities—Bing, for this query, adopts a striking likeness to Google Search. Yet, other searches remain unaffected, hinting this could indeed be intentional.
As you scroll through Bing’s rendition of a Google search, you’ll spot Google’s results towards the bottom, intertwined with several distinctly Microsoft features. If you’re signed in, additional buttons like Copilot or deep search icons make an appearance, though they’re initially subtle and might go unnoticed at first glance.
Parisa Tabriz, Chrome’s head at Google, expressed her thoughts on X, calling Microsoft’s strategy a “new low.” It’s a curious statement considering Google itself faces scrutiny in both the U.S. and EU for allegedly exploiting its market leverage to promote its products—talk about irony.
This isn’t Microsoft’s debut in using such tactics against Google. Back in August 2024, the company nudged Windows 11 users towards Bing, promoting it as the “recommended browser settings” for quicker, safer searches. Many who agreed to these changes noticed that a Bing extension was quietly added to their Google Chrome.
For now, Windows Central has reached out to both Google and Microsoft for comments and will update the details as soon as they come in.
