Microsoft is giving MSN a massive, much needed overhaul

When’s the last time you visited MSN.com? Exactly. Microsoft is hoping to change that. It has just unveiled an overhaul to make the venerable web portal more of a hub in keeping with CEO Satya Nadella’s “mobile first, cloud first” mantra. At the top of the new MSN home page there’s a strip of shortcuts to Microsoft services like One Drive, Office 365 and Skype — as well as to popular services like Facebook and Twitter. Soon, the company will introduce a variety of MSN apps for Apple and Android devices that carry any preference you set across all of your devices. So, for example, you will be able to set a watch list of stocks in MSN Money, sports teams in MSN Sports, or recipe collections in MSN Food & Drink. The idea, the company said, is that “those things will always be with you at your PC at work, on your iPad in the living room, or on your Android phone.” The new coat of paint also includes productivity tools like shopping lists and a savings calculator. There’s also amedical symptom checker and3D body explorer. In a blog post announcing the remake, Microsoft said the apps would launch “in coming months.” The MSN.com makeover itself is now available as a preview at preview.msn.com. It will roll it out in 55 markets worldwide in coming weeks.