The service acts when a user types a generic word or phrase such as “car” or “car insurance” into the browser command line, instead of entering a valid site address. If Yahoo! Experience has been downloaded by the user, the user will be taken to a Yahoo! search page. Without Yahoo! Experience, the user would be directed to MSN’s search page.
Yahoo! is able to divert users from MSN’s web properties by changing the preferences in Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (IE). These changes challenge MSN’s control over the command bar.
Microsoft offers a service in conjunction with RealNames which allows common words to link directly to web pages. IE is used by more than 85% of all web surfers. Microsoft therefore has the leverage to promote its own services through IE. It was only last month that Microsoft amended IE to operate such that users who mistyped internet addresses would be redirected to the MSN search service rather than the standard “page not found” error message.