‘Kumo’ may be used for more than just Search by Microsoft
Microsoft has been rumored for some time to be renaming its Live Search “Kumo” in 2009. However, a trademark application the company filed this month suggests Microsoft may use the name for more than just its search engine.
There have been tremors on the Web that Microsoft was considering a new brand name for Live Search, and now the site LiveSide is reporting that Microsoft has taken control of the domain name Kumo.com and is directing internal traffic to it as a test site.
The rebranded site is expected to launch early next year, according to a TechCrunch report that cited a source within the company. Very few people in the company are privy to the chosen name of the new brand, and it could still change, TechCrunch said.
According to the application, filed on Dec. 4, Microsoft wants to trademark Kumo for a host of software and services beyond a search engine, including advertising and telecommunications services, education, training, entertainment, and the design and development of computer hardware and services.
Kumo is a Japanese word that can be used to mean “cloud,” “ceiling” or “sea spider,” among other things, according to an online Japanese-to-English translation service.
The trademark application and various domain registrations could mean Microsoft plans to drop the Windows Live and Live Search brands, which are fairly new in and of themselves. Microsoft only gave its online services the “Windows Live” moniker at the end of 2005, later dropping the “Windows” for its search engine but keeping it for other services and Web-based client applications.
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