It’s official, Microsoft’s MSN News app has officially been renamed to “Microsoft News” on iOS and Android, though the new branding won’t replace the decades-old MSN brand. Microsoft News Editor in Chief Rob Bennett explained in a blog post today that the new name describes the infrastructure that powers Microsoft’s various news apps and services, including MSN.com:
Microsoft News is the new name for our news engine that powers familiar sites like MSN.com, and our newly redesigned Microsoft News app for iOS and Android. Microsoft News also powers news on Microsoft Edge, the News app in Windows 10, Skype, Xbox and Outlook.com.
A couple of days ago, The Microsoft News app was released as an update for the pre-existing MSN News app on iOS, and a similar update is available on Android today. Microsoft didn’t just change the name here, as the mobile app has been redesigned with a new navigation bar, a dark theme option and more.
Even though having a news app may not be core to Microsoft’s business, the company is proud to work with “more than a thousand premium publishers and more than 3,000 brands in all major global markets,” which all get a share of Microsoft’s ad revenue. “In just the past four years we’ve delivered more than $600 million back to our publishers, enabling them to focus on what they do best: quality journalism,” Bennett said.
Microsoft’s isn’t the only major tech company to be interested in media, but it remains to be seen if Microsoft News could one day become more than a simple news aggregator and offer premium content. For now, though, Microsoft claims that it has a team of 800 editors across the world to serve curated news in multiple regions. “We’re always assessing our network of partners to ensure that we provide the most diverse, credible and well-rounded content available,” sait Bennett.
