The next big thing in search is going to be "getting users more involved, helping you more with the task at hand instead of just a bunch of links," Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) chairman Bill Gates says in a two-part
video interview with CNBC on a range of topics, including the succession of Warren Buffett at Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A), where Gates is a board director, and the affect the recession is having on charitable giving to organizations, including as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. (You can watch the video below.)
Search is one of three areas Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has asked Gates to focus on, with the future of Microsoft Office and advanced research being the two others.
"Microsoft is part time for me," says Gates. "Steve Ballmer, the CEO, has picked a few things he wants me to stay engaged on, and I'm excited about that, but it tends to be around 20% of my time, so the Foundation is really the lion's share."
"If you're shopping or planning, if you have something you want to organize with a friend, search today doesn't do a very good job for you," says Gates. "So we'll redefine it to be more about solving a task that you have in mind."
Wonder whether that redefinition will involve a
deal between Microsoft and Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO)? -
Mary Kathleen Flynn
