According to a Knight Ridder report, Microsoft chairman Bill Gates is set to challenge the dominance of Google with his own high-powered search engine, which has been in secret development for more than a year.

A Microsoft spokesman said: “Microsoft believes that the search engine experience can be dramatically improved and we are investing significant financial and human resources in a new type of search engine that will be a major improvement on existing offerings.”

More than a year ago, Microsoft built what the software industry calls an “algorithmic crawler” – nicknamed a “spider” – to assemble a vast index of websites. After long months of combing the web, and assisted by a large team of programers, the spider’s work is nearing completion.

Microsoft’s search engine aims to provide a superior service by enabling users to personalize the service.

MSN Search results are now powered by Inktomi Search Index and serves Overture paid advertisements, both part of the Yahoo Search Engine Monster- which launched its own new search engine last month.

MSN?s New Search Engine in Testing Phase
http://beta.search.msn.com


Microsoft?s MSN division has launched a sneak peek beta test of its new MSN Search Engine. The new MSN Search is a full speed ahead effort for Microsoft to catch Google and Yahoo in the search engine race. The new MSN Search Beta Test can be previewed at http://beta.search.msn.com

At first glance MSN more or less uses the same style for their layout, but now clearly differentiates the difference between organic search results and paid search advertising. A plus for MSN.

If you search for ?online marketing? on the current MSN Search you?ll find a mixture of Looksmart driven Web Directory listings, Overture Sponsored Link ads, and Featured Sites? all peppered over the organic Inktomi results.

The New Beta Version is rumored to be delivering results from MSNBot, the new search engine developed by Microsoft (you may sometimes see Inktomi results during testing). The listings show no directory driven sites and are much cleaner? gearing up for a new IE browser that?s MSN Search friendly and Microsoft?s new toolbar. Here?s the same ?online marketing? search on MSN Search?s Beta Test.