Microsoft will be rolling out new sharing features for Bing Maps this week. Click to Share, which allows users to tweet, text, and e-mail directions from Bing Maps, was launched yesterday. Another new feature, Get There, will go live sometime later this week.
Get There is a small but handy addition that will allow users to edit directions more easily. It adds inline editing, which means that you will be able to modify your destination without needing to go back to the edit section. The directions interface will also be receiving some updates, making them easier to read and simplifying the available buttons.
Click to Share is compatible with Facebook and Twitter, and will allow you to share it through the social networking services in one click. The update also introduces the ability to send directions via SMS in the US, UK, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and Italy. In addition, the share by e-mail option has been overhauled. URLs will now be shortened using the "binged.it" domain, although the full address will still be available with a click. Click to Share also works with search results.
Microsoft has been working to integrate Bing with social networks, part of their campaign to make search "less lonely," so Click to Share doesn"t come as much of a surprise. By providing more social features, Microsoft hopes to drive users away from Google, currently the biggest player in search. Google is estimated to dominate the market by at least 62%, with some estimates ranging as high as 80%. Bing has experienced remarkable growth since its launch in 2009, with its combined market share with Yahoo, whose search it powers, estimated at around 30%. Some analysts have suggested that Bing could potentially overtake Google by next year, though plenty of others disagree.
Image courtesy of HP