MobileCrunch � Mobile Search Continues to Heat Up; Now Microsoft is Fanning the Flames

location based services

According to Suzan DelBene, corporate vice president of Microsoft’s Mobile and Embedded Devices Division there are som Asian contries where more people use mobile devices than PCs to access the Internet. She continues: For users like these, being able to combine search results with services that can sense a user’s location is critical, she said.

Personally I am surprised every time I DON’t see the name Microsoft in mobile related headlines. This is a company that MUST come to terms with the fact that mobile devices are a rapidly expanding segment of every market. I’ve gone on record as saying that Windows Mobile 5.0 is a much improved OS, but there’s still a long way to go before the user experience is anything remotely comparable to the desktop in terms of funcionality and usability.

“Those things are huge opportunities,” DelBene said, noting that Microsoft has begun tests of mobile search technology.

Called Windows Live Mobile Search, the technology is being tested in the U.S. and the U.K. It allows users to search for local listings, such as shops and restaurants, and provides them with maps and driving directions. Users can also call any of the returned listings from their handset with a single click of a button.

Windows Live Mobile Search also gives users access to search results from the Web, including blogs... (more at infoworld)

Tags: mobile-search, search, oliverstarr, mobilecrunch
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