File this under “missed opportunity” of the day: Bing, the Microsoft-developed search engine, is once again reminding people that by registering with its rewards program, you can earn fabulous prizes simply by searching.
In addition to some neat stuff like Hulu Plus subscriptions and Amazon gift cards, users can earn Microsoft Points for use in Xbox Live. The email comes with the tagline “rewards without a catch.” So far, so good, right?
Well, if you look closely at the fine print of the promotional email, you find out that Bing searches conducted on your Xbox 360 don’t actually count toward earning any credits at all (so you have no chance of redeeming any of the rewards using Bing on Microsoft’s console).
So if you’ve been gleefully shouting “Xbox, Bing!” at your Kinect these last few years, hoping for some delectable Microsoft Points to be sent your way, I’m sorry to say it was done in vain.