By Krishna Rao

The last weeks have seen a spate of claims and counter-claims traded between Google and Microsoft. At a Bing-sponsored event, Google accused Microsoft of cheating and copying its search results. Microsoft flatly denies it has done anything wrong, arguing that user data is just one signal among many that Bing uses to rank pages. As ever, the world of search and search engines continues to evolve.

The recent events are testament to this, confirming yet another search engine optimization (SEO) prediction for 2011 that leading search marketing and technology firm Greenlight made at the beginning of the year – that the rivalry between Bing and Google would step up a notch this year as Microsoft attempts to make a dent in Google’s monolithic market share.

Of Bing’s performance last year, Adam Bunn, director of SEO at Greenlight said in Greenlight’s 2011 search predictions: “By anyone’s standards, Bing has had a disappointing year in the UK. Despite having a good search engine with many innovative features and more than holding its own in terms of strategic partnerships, its market share (according to Hitwise), has barely budged from the 3% point it achieved more or less as soon as it was released in the middle of 2009. This will make Microsoft determined to put in a better showing in 2011. One consequence of this will be an acceleration of the tit for tat game of one-upmanship that Google and Bing have been engaged in since 2009.”

In its 2011 update, Greenlight has charted the facts and stats celebrating 16 years in the evolution of search and search engine optimization in all its guises, from 1993 – 2010.

So whatever happened to LookSmart, AltaVista, Inktomi, HotBot, Lycos, Infoseek, WebCrawler and Excite? All of this and more is ellucidated in the graphic.

“From bankrupties, mergers, acquisitions and becoming defunct, to the recent sparring between Google and Microsoft, all have been and are part of what continues to be the fast moving, rapidly evolving, changing and altering state of the world of search and its engines.”

About the author and Greenlight

Krishna Rao is PR at Greenlight, an independent search marketing specialist and technology firm, with over 100 blue-chip clients including Santander, Vodafone UK, New Look, Interflora, Co-operative Financial Services, Nespresso and ghd. Greenlight publishes industry reports, original research, speaking at trade events, and delivering a highly respected search training programme in conjunction with the IDM. Founded in 2001, Greenlight is headquartered in London, with offices in New York.

www.greenlightsearch.com