Microsoft vs. Google:Round 1

Microsoft and anti-trust laws are once again being mentioned in the same sentence. Microsoft’s new browser, Internet Explorer 7, was recently released as a test download. Google is claiming that the new browser creates an unfair advantage for Microsoft. In the new browser, there is a search box in the upper-right corner that is typically set up to send users to Microsoft’s MSN search site. The search sites are important because of the increasing market for advertisements that appear next to search results. Microsoft has been accused by Google of creating an unfair advantage. Microsoft will release the final version of IE 7 this summer, packaged together with the new Windows Vista.

In determining an end in this case, I believe that it is important for officials to attempt to calculate the implicit costs and revenues that Microsoft will make as a result of the new search window. How many advertisements will MSN now receive? Will the new browser create an overwhelming advantage for Microsoft in the search engine sector?