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Well I returned late last night from the EcoMap Costa Rica 2009 Field Season and the big news in the past week was Microsoft's rebanding of their Live search products as "Bing"! Bing is currently showing beta pages, but it officially goes live tomorrow on 3rd June.
My first reaction was "yet another un-necessary re-branding and what a stupid name"! This was partly from the perspective of Virtual Earth and MapPoint. However, as a rebranding of "Live Search"/etc this might actually be a pretty good idea. For ages I've complained about the whole "Windows Live" brand. It doesn't make sense. It isn't Windows and "Live" is too common a word. When combined with other words, we have some very blah product names that are simply confusing. "Live Search": Well I don't want a dead search! "Live Local": What is that supposed to be? "Live Maps": Does Italy wake up and kick Sicily at night? Both "Live Local" and "Live Maps" (and I suspect just about every other Live branded product) also had the problem that their domains were backwards. For example "Live Maps" is NOT at live.maps.com. So the whole thing was a mess. "Bing" might initially sound weird and I can already imagine the annoying TV adverts, but I think it could be a very good brand for Microsoft's search products. It is snappy and distinctive. It is not confusing like "Live". Next we come to Virtual Earth. All of Microsoft's online mapping services (Virtual Earth, MapPoint Web Service, MultiMap) are going to be rebranded as "Bing Maps". It makes sense to combine them. For example, it was only a matter of time before MultiMap became a part of the Virtual Earth family.The potential problem for the marketing gurus would be that there are at least three distinctive web services (VEWS, MWS, and MultiMap) which need to have distinctive names but with the same branding. I think the big mistake is the retirement of the "Virtual Earth" brand. This brand already exists, and a wider audience are beginning to see it and recognise it as distinctive from Google Maps. The name is also descriptive. It was a good brand name and this partly explains why Live Local and Live Maps never really caught on as names for the consumer version. Now the new "Bing Maps" brand means Microsoft are going to have to do the work all over again and tell consumers and potential customers that Bing Maps isn't Google Maps!
For those who would like some real content in addition to my musings, here is Microsoft's FAQ intended for Microsoft online mapping users:
FAQ
Q. How will this affect my organization’s solution?
A. If
you are using our mapping APIs, you will see the Bing watermark on
content starting on June 1. This is a logo change only. This update
will not introduce changes in performance or functionality of your
application. The contract for your mapping service does not change in
terms or duration. There is no action that you need to take.
Q. Do the API calls change?
A. No,
the API calls will not change. They will still refer to Virtual Earth
and MapPoint to help make sure that your implementation does not break
and you do not need to make changes.
Q. Will the API Terms of Use change?
A. The API Terms of Use
will be updated to replace the Microsoft Virtual Earth name with Bing
Maps for Enterprise, but there is no other change to the terms.
Q. What if I have implemented the logo myself?
A. If you are not implementing the logo through the Virtual Earth, MapPoint Web Service, or Multimap APIs,
please update your application to use the new Bing logo by September 1,
2009, at the latest. Logos may be obtained from your Microsoft contact
for use with the mapping content in your application.
Q. My organization is featured in a Virtual Earth case study or press release. Will you be updating it with the new brand?
A. All
new case studies and press releases after May 28, 2009, should feature
the new brand. We will be updating some case studies to reflect the new
brand and will contact you if necessary. We will not be updating press
releases that predate the change.
Q. What if I refer to the Microsoft Virtual Earth brand on my Web site?
A. If
you refer to Microsoft Virtual Earth on your Web site, we would like
you to change your implementation to use the new name as soon as
possible. If you would like to use the Bing logo or brand treatments on
your Web site, please contact your Microsoft contact for approval and
permission.
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