New GOAT for many multinationals, the success of WeChat, the reference Super Application in China inspires more than one… And this time, it is the turn of the American giant Microsoft to enter the race. A surprising entry that is not by chance and you will quickly understand…
Bing, on the way to the new WeChat
With more than a billion users, the Chinese Super App has built up its power in just 11 years. Inspired by a concept not yet very adopted in Europe, WeChat could be summarized as an ecosystem of services. Initially a simple messaging application, WeChat now includes an electronic wallet, cab booking and a search engine. A strategic pivot that once again inspires one of the GAFAMs.
Indeed, according to an article in The Information, Microsoft would be in the first stage of creating its own Super-App.” An “all-in-one” application that would bring together numerous features, including a messaging service, news consultation and Internet search.
Services are already offered individually by the American giant. So much so that it seems that “Satya Nadella, current CEO of Microsoft, has put pressure on his teams to better integrate the Bing search engine into other services and applications like Teams or Outlook. A shift initiated by the American multinational with the ultimate goal of “expanding further into consumer services.”
A new lab for Microsoft’s advertising network
As announced in the introduction, this transformation is not trivial… Indeed, Microsoft is primarily recognized as a solution provider for businesses and not so much in B2C, unlike Google or Apple.
Two American giants long envied by Microsoft. Indeed, still according to the article on The Informations, it seems that Microsoft has repeatedly asked Apple to make Bing its default search engine. Without real success! The reason: The billion-dollar loyalty pact between Google and Apple.
A fierce competition in which Microsoft wants to win, especially at the level of stores. A diversification that would allow them to finally have their own application universe, but especially generate billions of dollars in advertising revenue. Following the example of WeChat which, according to Daxue Consulting, “the number of WeChat mini-apps in 2020 amounted to 3.2 million for 108.2 billion Yuan!”
A more than successful business, inevitably attracting covetousness in the Western market… So much so that unexpected players are entering the race, like Elon Musk and his X project under the aegis of Twitter! But that’s another story…
