New Microsoft Browser Raises Google's Hackles - New York Times

New Microsoft Browser Raises Google's Hackles - New York Times: "Microsoft has lost some ground in the browser market in the last year, mainly to Firefox, which is a Google ally. But Microsoft still holds more than 80 percent of the market. And Internet Explorer 7 is expected to be extremely popular because it is an improvement over Microsoft's previous browser, and because Microsoft will promote downloads of it and include it in Windows Vista.
That gives Microsoft the potential to use the browser to steer substantial traffic, and business, to MSN and away from rivals. MSN handled 11 percent of searches in the United States in March, down slightly from a year earlier, according to Nielsen/Net Ratings, a market research firm. That put it well behind Google, which had a 49 percent share, and Yahoo, with 22 percent.
Microsoft insists it has no intention of deploying its browser as a weapon in the search wars. But Google suspects otherwise."

Microsoft is at it again, using software to gain market share, muddling the line between fair but aggressive competition and unfair and exclusionary treachery. It's hard to judge them, but you have to admit that Bill Gates is an excellent game player.