Mashing-Up Google and Bing
In the great debate over whether Google or Bing produces better search results, a new site called Bingle lets Web users have it both ways. … Entering a query on Bingle generates side-by-side search results on both Bing and Google.
Context & Ripple Effects
Since Microsoft launched Bing earlier in 2009, the running question has been whether its results genuinely rival Google's or whether the difference is branding. Bingle turns that argument into a tool: one query box, two result pages, side by side.
First-order effects
- Web searchers weighing Google against Bing get a per-query, side-by-side comparison instead of having to take either company's own account of its quality.
Second-order effects
- Bing's push to win users from Google now has to survive direct, query-level inspection — any gap in relevance between the two engines becomes visible to anyone who checks, while Google's incumbent quality is benchmarked for free.
Third-order effects
- If third-party comparison tools catch on, engine choice shifts from habit and default settings toward measured result quality, pushing Microsoft and Google to compete on outcomes users can verify themselves.
The trend: Web search competition is moving from brand loyalty and defaults toward user-verifiable result quality, with independent tools arbitrating the matchup.