Microsoft Live Rebrand: The New Buzz

The new buzz, initially , revolves around a Twitter update attributed to an unnamed Microsoft executive. "Played today with Live search upcoming (to be rebranded) launch pre-beta," the tweet is quoted as saying. "I like the new features and UX so far." (UX, by the way, is an abbreviation for .) The message, LiveSide says, has since been deleted, though the site has published what it claims to be .

Added onto that is a Twitter update by a user , who heads up the company's Most Valuable Professionals (MVP) program. "Live search update will be discussed in Steve Ballmers speech on Wednesday @ #mvp09," the tweet says, referring to this week's private being held in the Seattle area.

Tracking Change

The idea of a Live rebrand has been floating around for months. The name "Kumo" surfaced as last November, when tech sites noticed Microsoft had snagged several domains centering on the word. In the meantime, new features have slowly popped up on the struggling search engine: , , and more than a few forms of what can .