New Windows Live Mobile Search Ads Beta, Homepage That Emphasizes Social Networking

Microsoft this week has done a number of things in the mobile space, in addition to its introduction of the Live Search Cashback program on the desktop (which presumably will extend to mobile search/shopping). Windows Live launched a new homepage for mobile and the company introduced graphical ads and paid search for mobile.

The new mobile home page for Windows Live emphasizes social networking features, with links to mobile Messenger and Spaces. There’s also a friend feed (“What’s New”):

Mobile social networking will ultimately be an important phenomenon in mobile. There are a range of estimates and data in the market, but recent research I conducted with colleagues through Local Mobile Search (in North America) found that only 6 percent of mobile users say they’ve accessed a social network via their mobile phone.

In having both Windows Live and MSN mobile sites, Microsoft is recapitulating a bit of the brand confusion that exists on the desktop. The company of course also offers the much richer Live Search client, which has voice input as well as traffic, maps and collections, gas prices, local business and movie search.