What’s in a name?

Well, a lot, actually, and BoomTown supposes it would be just like those Pacific Northwest types at Microsoft to name the new version of its search service “Bing,” presumably after the cherry that is a big product in the company’s home state.

That moniker is one of many being bandied about in a group the software giant could be considering for the big relaunch of its search service, which the company has been prepping.

Microsoft’s search service is currently called–zzzzz–Live Search.

“All About Microsoft” crack blogger Mary-Jo Foley of ZDNet recently wrote about the Bing name, which is registered to the company, as well as “Hook” and the one that Microsoft is using now as its test name, Kumo.

Kumo means “cloud” and “spider” in Japanese, which seems a wee bit esoteric.

Today, paidContent.org dropped “Sift” into the mix, although it seems to be related to mobile phones, along with “Swivel.”

I, for one, am feeling both like flour and getting dizzy at the thought of those names.

Foley at ZDnet feels the same, noting today in a post:

“(Would Microsoft be crazy enough to trademark its general Web search engine and its search engine for mobile with two different names, say Bing and Sift? As Windows Live has shown, truth can be stranger than fiction….)”

Microsoft (MSFT), of course, is keeping the name for its search service under tight wraps, but it is obviously going to be spending a shipload of money on its branding in another attempt to catch market leaders Google (GOOG) and Yahoo (YHOO).

Microsoft has been recently talking to Yahoo about a search partnership deal, although they are likely both to keep their brands and search products in any event.

Nonetheless, execs and minions in the know laugh at me loudly when I ask them to leak it to me.

(Note to anyone at Microsoft: Pretty please, someone leak it to me, even if it’s in the form of a memo from the leaky cauldron that is Yahoo.)

I doubt someone will, though. “It’s like Fort Knox secret,” said one Softie source, referring to the Kentucky fortress where the largest amount of the United States gold reserves are stored.

Hey, if Auric Goldfinger, OddJob and Pussy Galore could get into Fort Knox in that most excellent James Bond film, I can certainly find out the name of Microsoft’s search service!

Personally, I like Bing, and cherries from Washington state are indeed tasty (and coming soon too!)

According to the Heart of Washington Web site, its state’s cherries rate. Some fun factoids:

- Washington State produces more than 50 percent of all the sweet cherries in the United States.
- The Rainier cherry, which is yellow with a red blush, was made from a cross between two dark red cherries, the Van and Bing.
- Americans eat approximately 2.6 pounds of cherries per year.
- There are approximately 53 pitted cherries in one pound of cherries.
- The Bing cherry, which all cherries are measured against, was first developed in 1874 in Milwaukie, Ore.
- The Bing cherry was named after one of Seth Lewelling’s workers. The Bing cherry was developed by Seth Lewelling.
- Washington cherries are shipped around the world; the top three foreign markets are Canada, Taiwan and Japan.
- In 2001, there were 29,000 acres of sweet cherries in the state.
- The Washington cherry season begins in late May with some product seen at farmer’s markets. Commercial shipping begins around June 5, and will continue until mid-August. The peak of the season runs from June 20 to Aug. 1.

Plus, if Microsoft uses Bing, they could also rebrand their MSN online service, “Bada” and their email product, “Boom.”

Then, they can get Tony Soprano as their spokesman with the motto: “Bada Bing, Bada Boom, Notta Bada Algorithm!”

Or better still: “If you use Google, we’ll whack you!”

Now, that’s more like it.

Here below are three screenshots of Microsoft’s internal test of a new search product called Kumo.

The long expected upgrade to the Live Search product from Microsoft (MSFT) is being tested for a public rollout later this year.

The blogosphere was a-twitter, literally, after a Twitter post by Powerset co-founder Barney Pell this past weekend, about a rebranding and updating of the search offering. (Microsoft acquired Powerset last year and Pell works on search strategy.)

Sources at Microsoft said the company has not yet decided whether it will keep the Kumo name, which sounds a little too much like that crazy dog from the Stephen King novel.

Maybe that’s the point, at least related to Google. (Chomp!)

In Japanese, actually, Kumo has two definitions–cloud and spider.

Microsoft has been trying to catch up in the search game by spending big-time after it failed to acquire Yahoo (YHOO) last year.

And it still wants to do a search deal with Yahoo, in order to make a dent in the market dominance of Google (GOOG).

Until then, of course, Microsoft must innovate. And, so far, Kumo seems to be an interesting effort with a clean and spare look.

But what do you think? Let me know in the comments.

Also, here is the memo from Microsoft search head Satya Nadella about it, urging all company employees to try it out and send feedback:

From: Satya Nadella
Sent: Monday, March 02, 2009 4:18 PM
To: Microsoft–All Employees (QBDG)
Subject: Announcement: Internal Search Test Experience

The Search team needs you. We’ve been working hard to improve our search service and want to share the progress we are making with you. We are launching a new test program called kumo.com for employees to try and provide feedback. Kumo.com exists only inside the corporate network, and in order to get enough feedback we will be redirecting internal live.com traffic over to the test site in the coming days. Kumo is the codename we have chosen for the internal test.

In spite of the progress made by search engines, 40% of queries go unanswered; half of queries are about searchers returning to previous tasks; and 46% of search sessions are longer than 20 minutes. These and many other learnings suggest that customers often don’t find what they need from search today.

We believe we can provide a better and more useful search experience that helps you not just search but accomplish tasks. During the test, features will vary by country, but you’ll see results organized in a way that saves you more time. An explorer pane on the left side of results pages will give you access to tools that help you with your tasks. Other features like single session history and hover preview help accomplish more in search sessions.

Your Next Search…

To get started, visit kumo.com or click one of the samples below to see how it’s possible to find the right results more easily:

· Audi S8
· Taylor Swift
. Bose Lifestyle 48

You can also set your search defaults to test site using the instructions here.

Your Feedback is Critical

As employees, you are some of our most informed users and our toughest critics, and we highly value your input and feedback to help us build a better service. You have been an important voice in our efforts, and the feedback you’ve sent us since the company meeting has been amazing.

When you visit kumo.com, at the bottom right corner of the each page you’ll see a feedback badge. We ask that each time you use the test site, click the feedback badge and take a moment to answer four quick and simple questions. Feel free to reach out to give us extra feedback directly on our blog and by mailing sfeed. For answers to common questions make sure to see our FAQ.

We are committed to rapid innovation and improvement. Please give the test site a try, rate the results and let us know what you think.

Satya

Here are the three screenshots too (click on the images twice to make them larger):

Taylor Swift

Audi S8

Bose Lifestyle 48

BoomTown loves a good memo and here’s one that two of Microsoft’s top online execs, Yusuf Mehdi and Satya Nadella sent out about the deal the tech giant signed with Dell (DELL) and Verizon (VZ) to distribute its search and other products.

Microsoft (MSFT) is opening its fat wallet to do such a deal and try to best archrival Google (GOOG). It was announced last night at Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer’s keynote kickoff for the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Here’s the memo:

From: Yusuf Mehdi
Sent: Wednesday, January 07, 2009 6:29 PM
To: OSD R&D FTE World Wide; Online Audience Business Group FTE; APSP FTE–Adv & Pub Solutions Platform
Cc: Yusuf Mehdi; Satya Nadella; Qi Lu
Subject: Announcing Dell and Verizon Strategic Partnerships!

Satya and Yusuf

Yesterday, based on sources, BoomTown reported, that Yahoo search exec Sean Suchter was headed to Microsoft.

Now it’s official. Here’s a Microsoft (MSFT) statement on the hiring of Suchter (pictured here), an important tech leader at Yahoo (YHOO), from Satya Nadella, SVP for Search, Portal and Advertising:

“We are very pleased to confirm that Sean Suchter will be joining Microsoft as the GM of our Silicon Valley Search Technology Center, working on Live Search. Sean will report into Harry Shum when he starts work on December 22. We look forward to welcoming him to Microsoft at that time.”

The talent grab from Yahoo is an interesting one, given that Microsoft has also tried to to buy Yahoo’s search and search ad business many times, to little success.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer reiterated that desire yesterday at the software giant’s annual meeting, although he discounted the possibility that Microsoft would rebid for all of Yahoo after it abandoned a takeover attempt earlier this year.

His statement sent Yahoo’s stock further into the basement.

Losing important execs like Suchter, who was the VP of Search Technology at Yahoo, will also not help the company’s prospects. Suchter was deeply involved in Yahoo’s efforts to open up its search platform, initiatives the company has touted aggressively as a bright spot in its not-so-lustrous landscape.

Suchter–who came to Yahoo almost six years ago after it acquired Inktomi (the company that got Yahoo into the search business) in early 2003–has been talking with Microsoft for a while and his leaving was not linked to this week’s announcement that Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang will be stepping down.

But it could be linked to the possibility that another former major Yahoo search exec could also be going to Microsoft. I wrote a post earlier today that I thought the Ballmer was looking at Qi Lu–the well-regarded Search and Advertising Technology group EVP at Yahoo, who left earlier this year–to be its digital head.

All this muscling up in search by Microsoft is troubling for Yahoo. There are big questions, now that Yang is stepping down, whether Yahoo will stay in the search business or sell it off. Yang has been a big proponent of doubling down in search, considering it integral to the entire Yahoo ecosystem.

But others make the very persuasive argument that Yahoo will be increasingly outspent by both Google (GOOG) and Microsoft, in what is turning into a very vicious and expensive arms race.

If it sold off its No. 2 search business to Microsoft–ironically, Yahoo used to deliver Microsoft’s search results–many think it could have huge costs savings and garner guaranteed revenues.

News of Suchter’s departure from Yahoo, including the internal memo announcing it, appeared in Valleywag yesterday.

Please see this disclosure related to me and Google.

So is this the way Microsoft (MSFT) intends to try to best Google (GOOG)?

Pay consumers to search? Pay computer companies to put its search in their hardware?

Ah, Dale Carnegie’s big-bag-of- money tactic!

What’s next? Giving out dollars in Internet cafes for folks to stop using Google’s simple box?

In any case, it will be interesting to see if using Microsoft’s copious cash reserves–more now if it does not complete a transaction to buy Yahoo (YHOO) for upward of $40 billion–to goose its prospects will be successful.

I doubt it, as these kind of deals have come and then have quickly gone in the Internet space, as companies seek ways to get users to look over their wares using every trick in the book.

What works, of course, is making a product consumers want to use and over and over again without resorting to payoffs and fixed deals.

But, so far, with only a tiny (and declining) 9.1% of the search market to Google’s huge (and rising) 61.5%, making a better mousetrap has not worked for Microsoft.

Thus, cue the giant incoming truckload of cheese.

So, it was probably a forgone conclusion for Microsoft to make a deal with the world’s largest personal computer maker, Hewlett-Packard (HPQ), to put a toolbar that uses Microsoft’s Live Search on its upcoming PCs in the United States and Canada, starting in 2009, as was announced yesterday.

Live Search will also be the default search engine in the browsers installed on the new PCs. In the deal, Microsoft replaces Yahoo, which had previously been touted by HP.

And, while Microsoft did not give details about the agreement, I think it would be safe to say the software giant paid a pretty penny for the privilege in a pay-to-play deal format that is as old as the Internet.

Years ago, MSN and AOL (TWX) would compete in similar money contests to get their services on desktops. And, of course, Microsoft got into a lot of trouble over the way it tried to get the Netscape browser off of them.

But, one would also assume it is saving up its pennies for a similar deal with Dell (DELL), where Google now gets top rank on its PCs until 2009, after forking over a pile of its own cash.

This comes after Microsoft’s announcement last month that it would initiate a cash-back program for consumers who buy goods using its search. Called Live Search Cashback, it is a little like a loyalty program mixed with a rebate program.

And a lot like trying to buy your way into a market when you have found your technology is not getting you the kind of traction you need.

Unfortunately for Microsoft, which is showing some nice competitive spirit, these efforts are not likely to yield the results it needs to keep up with–let alone catch–Google or even get into the No. 2 spot currently occupied by Yahoo.

As BoomTown wrote yesterday, there is only one way to do that–buy Yahoo–and that deal remains stillborn.

Please see this disclosure related to me and Google.