Summary: Hugh Williams leaves Microsoft, but the impact on eBay can be negative

SOME DAYS ago, amid Microsoft departures, we noted that Juniper was being occupied by Microsoft people, just like VMware. Back in January we showed that eBay too swallowed the Microsoft pill and while the following news is indicative of Bing's demise (despite about $100,000,000 in marketing), it does raise some important questions. The news can be found in:

• Industry Moves: EBay Hires Microsoft Search Exec As Search VP



• Redmond's revolving door: Two more execs depart



• Bing Product Manager Bolts To eBay (MSFT, EBAY)

Look what position he gains at eBay

Hugh Williams, the Microsoft Bing product development manager, quit two weeks ago to take a job at eBay as vice president of development for search.

That's the second eBay Vice President who comes from Microsoft this year. Will this result in more deals like this one or even this more recent one? Mind this report from TechFlash:

Just as Microsoft is becoming a popular destination for former Yahoo search engineers and executives, eBay appears to becoming one for ex-Microsofties.

BizJournal paraphrases (and cites) TechFlash:

Just as Microsoft Corp. is becoming a popular destination for former Yahoo search engineers and executives, eBay appears to be popular for ex-Microsofties.

TechnFlash is paid for by Bing/Microsoft, so no wonder about 50% of yesterday's posts there were about "Bing", striving to improve brand recognition in exchange for those payments/funding. This is not press; this is the pimping or advertising for the sponsor, disguised as 'news reports'.

Regardless of all the above, Google looks down on Bing, but the real danger may be damage to eBay, from the inside.

Google mocks Bing and the stuff behind it

[...]

"If we make a minor change to, say, disk storage to get a three per cent gain and we roll that our to the GFS library, suddenly the entire base of applications stored on GFS sees that gain."

Bing is no risk to Google. To name some previous posts about Microsoft's search ambitions:

• Is This Bing or is it Bong?
• Does Microsoft Break the Law in Search of a Future?
• Yahoo! and Microsoft Still Search for a Future!
• With Vista 7 Already Disappointing, Is There a Future for Microsoft?
• Bingeing with Microsoft and Ruining the Environment
• New Speculations About Microsoft Buying Citrix or Grabbing Yahoo! Search
• Search Engine News: Google Is Not...
• Microsoft Pays Company Which Recommends Bing Over Google
• From Live Search to Dead Search (aka “Bing”)
• Microsoft's Search Engine Already Banned by Websense and by China
• Name it “Bing” or “Kumo” or “Live” or “MSN”, But it is Dead on Arrival
• “Decisions Engine” Means Microsoft Decides What You Should Think
• Reader's Article: Bing Against Google

As Microsoft continues to shrink it will be worthwhile seeing what damage its anti-competitive staff can inflict upon other companies. To replace one thug with another is no victory; it is a problem relocated, sometimes expanding the circle of malign influence. ⬆