Η Microsoft προσπαθεί να δημιουργήσει μια “super εφαρμογή” που θα ενσωματώνει μια πλατφόρμα ανταλλαγής μηνυμάτων, δυνατότητα για αγορές, αναζήτηση στον Ιστό καθώς και ειδήσεις σε μια ενιαία εφαρμογή, μια προφανή προσπάθεια να ακολουθήσει τις πλατφόρμες της Apple και της Google.
According a publication του The Information, η Microsoft βρίσκεται στα πρώτα στάδια της κατασκευής μιας “super εφαρμογής” υπό την καθοδήγηση του CEO της εταιρείας Satya Nadella. Ο Nadella φέρεται να έχει δώσει οδηγίες στους προγραμματιστές της Microsoft να ενσωματώσουν καλύτερα το Bing, τη μηχανή αναζήτησης της εταιρείας, σε άλλες υπηρεσίες και εφαρμογές, όπως το Microsoft Teams και το Outlook, δημιουργώντας την βάση για την “super εφαρμογή”.
While it's unclear whether Microsoft will eventually release such an app, people familiar with the discussions said CEO Satya Nadella has laid the groundwork by pushing the Bing search engine to work better with other Microsoft mobile products. For example, it asked Bing to integrate with Outlook's messaging and email apps, making it easier for customers to share search results in messages.
Microsoft is not a purely consumer-oriented company, as most of its revenue comes from the sale of software and enterprise sales. Microsoft has previously mentioned ambitions to become more consumer-friendly by offering services such as the "super app". Microsoft has failed to acquire major apps and social media platforms like TikTok and Pinterest in the past, which could have been part of the company's bigger plans.
Today's announcement shows Microsoft's interest in overtaking Google to become the default search engine on the iPhone. Google pays Apple billions every year to remain the default search engine on the iPhone, and while users can change it, the default setting puts Microsoft's Bing at a disadvantage. According to The Information, Microsoft held high-level talks with Apple to try to outbid Google, but they were unsuccessful.
Negotiations to date have typically taken place directly between Nadella and Apple's top executives behind closed doors, leaving many top Microsoft executives in the dark about the process.
The publication notes that Microsoft in 2012 ran a PR campaign to show how Bing was used far more by visually impaired people compared to Google. But the trick wasn't "enough to win Apple's approval."
