WebProNews

A recent report from ZDNet News outlines an interesting discovery. Though Microsoft gets up to 7 times more press than rivals Google and Apple Computers, more people read about the latter pair.

Conclusions drawn from a BT Trax analysis of headline "conversion rates" showed that both Apple and Google articles were twice as likely to be read by tech and net news consumers. This is thought to show where your average readers' interests truly lie.

According to the chart, Google has ruled the headline conversion rate for the last six months, with Apple falling close behind. Microsoft is third, followed by Intel an IBM way down the list.

A test of the blogosphere using Intelliseek's BlogPulse revealed a similar finding of Google in 1st, Apple 2nd, and Microsoft 3rd.

Even though more major press is given to Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft, its two biggest competitors in software and search are more often read and written about by nontraditional journalistic entities.

Analysts suggest the reason for such a slant has to do with the way the tech world is changing. More and more people are moving toward browser-oriented desktops and have enjoyed the continually updated features that Google offers.

In a similar vein, Apple's embrace and promotion of cutting edge developments like RSS and podcasting have earned a reputation as an innovator. Microsoft finds itself at a disadvantage recently, as everyone awaits the release of Longhorn/Vista and the Xbox 360. Perhaps a new test should be done next spring after both new releases have been launched.

Jason L. Miller is a staff writer for WebProNews covering technology and business.