But this is a matter of core functionality. Bing should not be using clickstream data from Google searches as a signal. The core offering of Google search is getting used by its competitor, without any citation. Yes, it's a side effect of the Bing bar's clickstream tracking, but it's still an observable, quantifiable effect.

It’s like if Developer A takes Developer B's code and passes it off as his own work without any citation. Does it matter if it was malicious or incidental? Not really, it's still wrong. And if Developer A gets caught doing it, he should own up to his mistake and fix it.

The way I see it, it's like if B builds entire applications by pasting snippets from Stack Overflow without citation, and then pitches a holy fit upon realizing that one of his/her amalgamations of Stack Overflow snippets has in turn been cut and pasted.

The boundary just seems arbitrary to me, which makes the whole thing seem hypocritical.

How so? Bing didn't steal any code from Google tocreate this. It can only up to be saying A uses B's site responses and put them into their results, with like 8% of the time.

"Bing should not be using clickstream data from Google searches as a signal."

Why not?

and take a look at inline dictionary definitions, page previews, images - the entire business is based on 'copying' other people's info. My question was genuine - what are you thinking, google?

Well gosh, developing ever more elaborate versions of the algorithm must have cost them tens, maybe hundreds, of millions of dollars over the years. How the hell are they supposed to cover that kind of expense with just billions of dollars per quarter?