Google claims that its rival Bing, Microsoft's search engine, copies search results without their consent. 

For some time, Google suspected that their search results were stolen by Bing. After conducting a series of experiments, they say now they know for sure. To prove that Bing copies from Google, they set up a trap.

They paired nonsense words like 'hiybbprqag' to a specific result. The site where this query leads us to has nothing to do with this word and the only connection between the word and the suggested website is a link in the Google search engine. After this word was entered in the search bar in Internet Explorer a few times, the phony suggestion suddenly showed up in Bing on a search for this nonexistent word. The only explanation is that Bing takes over suggestions from Google.

According to Google, Bing can do this because search queries that are conducted through Internet Explorer, and the results that are selected by users consequently, are all saved and stored by Microsoft. The browser uses this information to improve search results. The Bing-toolbar, which can be installed separately, would contribute to this kind of espionage.

Microsoft has admitted that it does indeed watch the results of other search engines, but this is only one of many sources Bing uses to organise and itemise data. Microsoft is working hard to improve their search engine and sees no harm in it to study a successful competitor like Google in this  process. In any case, Bing has a long way to go. In the Netherlands, the Microsoft search engine has only a marginal market share.

Related links: CBS News, AOLnews