Facebook has amped up its relationship with Microsoft in a scheme to combine Facebook data into search results.
In a new feature announced with Microsoft on Wednesday, the social site will combine information from Facebook into users’ search queries – for example, recommendations from friends about movies or restaurants.
“When you search for something on Bing or in web results on Facebook (powered by Bing), you'll be able to see your friends' faces next to web pages they've liked,” said Facebook CTO Bret Ryan. “So, you can lean on friends to figure out the best websites for your search.”
Microsoft’s Bing search engine will use Facebook’s “like” feature to determine the order of search results.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the move was a deepening of the company’s partnership with Microsoft – much of it apparently directed at their common foe Google.
Microsoft paid $240 million for a 1.6% stake in Facebook three years ago. Since then the two companies have worked together on bringing ads on Facebook and adding Bing Maps into Facebook’s location app, the New York Times said.
Despite its heavy investment in its Bing search engine, Microsoft has barely made ground on Google in the search ads market. However, Google has made little headway in the social space, despite introducing Google Buzz and opening up Gmail to allow for more sharing.
Like many Facebook innovations, the latest move flirts with users’ privacy boundaries. But Zuckerberg said Bing users won’t gain access to any information about Facebook users that is not already available to them on the site.
Meanwhile, Skype has launched a new version of its VoIP client with Facebook integration.
The new software is integrated with the Facebook News Feed, allowing users to post status updates, comments and likes directly from Skype.
Users can also call and SMS Facebook friends using the Facebook Phonebook. If both the caller and receiver are Skype users the call will be free.
Facebook has been rumored to be planning a Facebook phone or mobile OS. The tie-up with Skype may be related to these goals.