Points can be earned for making searches on Bing. It's then possible to redeem them for music and movies

Every second on the internet, thousands of tweets, Facebook posts, and web searches are completed. The majority of the latter are made on Google.

Microsoft wants to turn this tide. As part of its Rewards scheme, launching today in the UK, it will 'pay' you to use Bing instead of its competitors.

The incentives scheme launched in the US in August 2016. "It's a rewards program for using Microsoft's products and services," Kevin Stagg, head of consumer marketing at Microsoft, tells WIRED. "In the UK we're launching with Bing and the Microsoft Stores".

The premise behind the rewards scheme is simple: people with a Microsoft account can sign-up for the rewards scheme and when a search is made on Bing, or an item is purchased from the Microsoft Store, points will be collected. These points can then be swapped for items.

"The points can be redeemed for a number of Microsoft offerings," Stagg explains. "These might include free movies and music, or entry into larger prize sweepstakes". At its UK launch, one of Microsoft's larger prizes is the chance to win an appearance in Charli XCX’s new music video.

Essentially, the scheme from Microsoft is a loyalty card for its search engine. Stats from April 2017 show that those searching online in the UK use Google vastly more than Bing. The statistics claim Google usage is at 85.74 per cent, with Bing in second place with a 10.07 per cent market share and Yahoo trailing in third place with 3.16 per cent usage.

Stagg says the rewards scheme has been introduced to give something to Microsoft's current users as well as helping to attract new customers to Bing and its online store. For Bing, there are two levels of points to redeem. Level 1 members can earn points for 10 searches per day while those at Level 2 can earn reward points for 50 searches per day. The number of searches used are refreshed each day.

Microsoft says it will also launch rewards in France, Germany, and Canada in the "coming weeks and months".



Wired UK