Since launching Bing in June, Microsoft has seen its new and very much improved search engine take small bites out of its rivals on a month by month basis. Bing has averaged around a 1 percent gain every month since launch, but the figures for September show that trend may have ended already. Is Bing’s market share increase already on the slide?

Microsoft has broken a symbolic barrier with Bing now being used for more than 10 percent of U.S. Web searches. But the news was tempered by contest results which suggest the site is more prone to bugs than its rivals.

For years Google has been the only option when it comes to search. Oh, there were alternatives, including Microsoft’s own various attempts at turning the Web into an organized collection of sites and pages, but Google ruled all. But maybe no longer, as Bing is attempting to upset the apple cart. Bing is currently evolving, and the first new feature being rolled out is Visual Search.

Microsoft Bing has done rather well since it launched. But there is much more to come, with the site set to evolve and expand in the coming months. In fact, Bing 2.0 could be just around the corner. Meanwhile, Microsoft has had to deny it has an obsession with porn after an advert for Bing was discovered on Google alongside search results for “pornography.”

The Justice Department has asked Microsoft and Yahoo for more documents relating to their proposed search deal. It’s being seen as an indication the anti-trust investigation could be more substantial than expected.

A Microsoft executive has admitted that Bing’s first edition is specifically targeted at shoppers who plan to spend online. It comes as the firm launches a TV commercial touting the cashback features of the site.

With the deal between Microsoft and Yahoo, which sees Bing become the search solution for both companies, sights can now be set firmly on Google. But all the behind-the-scenes work counts for nothing if Google is quite simply a lot better at delivering results than Bing. But does it? A blind search should solve the riddle and settle the Bing vs. Google argument.

Either through Bing being a better brand than anyone thought it was or the lure of cash back, Bing Shopping has managed to grow a phenomenal amount since the site launched at the beginning of June. Which must have put noses out of joint at long-standing price comparison sites such as Pronto and Pricegrabber. Not to mention Yahoo Shopping.

Bing is a great search engine. It’s the first search effort from Microsoft that I’ve found can almost compete with Google for relevant results to queries. And I’ve started using it alongside Google on a daily basis. However, that may cease if Microsoft continues to censor Bing search results in order to make the company and its products look better.

Every product, good or bad, needs an advertising campaign. And many advertising campaigns are built around a catchy jingle or unforgettable slogan. Has Microsoft found the answer to both these problems with a song by Jonathan Mann, known on YouTube as ‘The Rock Cookie Bottom’? His Jingle is called Bing Goes The Internet and is… interesting.

Have you used Bing yet? Microsoft’s new and improved search engine is the company’s best effort at search yet, and it has been gaining not only plaudits but also traffic in the two months since it launched. In light of this, and the new partnership with Yahoo!, is there any chance of Bing catching up with Google in the search sector?

Microsoft and Yahoo have finally reached an agreement to collaborate and work together after two years of an on-off relationship more suited to a daytime soap opera than a business deal. So what changed Yahoo’s mind after years of being wooed by Microsoft? It seems Bing had a huge part to play.

Microsoft has publicly released a game used to improve Bing’s search results. During a test period, it was the players’ mistakes rather than successes which assisted researchers.

While Bing is making small market share gains, Microsoft isn’t yet reaping the rewards of increased ad revenues. However, one forecast says the firm could take in an extra $400 million thanks to the site.

Microsoft has conceded Bing’s performance was under par in dealing with the death of Michael Jackson. The firm says in the future it will consider manual alterations to the system to cope with major news events.