Microsoft is emailing members of Bing Rewards , informing them of some major changes to the program that offers a way to earn points towards purchasing gift cards. One of those changes is that the program will now be called Microsoft Rewards.

The old Bing Rewards let users earn points for gift cards, sweepstakes entries and more by searching on Bing. The new Microsoft Rewards will retain earning points via Bing searches, but users will also be able to earn points by purchasing items in both the Windows Store and Microsoft Store. Yes, that even includes buying items in physical Microsoft Store locations. In addition, points can be earned by using the Microsoft Edge web browser:

You'll earn points when you're actively browsing. Active browsing means the Microsoft Edge browser is in view on your desktop and the icon is highlighted on the taskbar AND you're actively engaging with the browser (mouse movements, clicks, touch gestures, keyboard presses, or presentation mode - like watching a full-screen video).

Bing Rewards used a "credit" system, but Microsoft Rewards will convert them to "points". In the new system, one Bing Rewards credit will be turned into 10 Microsoft Points. Finally, the levels of membership will change as well. Bing Rewards has three levels (Member, Silver and Gold), but Microsoft Rewards will just have Tier 1 and Tier 2 levels. If users earn 500 Microsoft Points a month, they will be a Tier 2 member and will be able to get a 10% discount on rewards from Microsoft brands. All current Bing Rewards members who signed up prior to August 15 will be upgraded to Tier 2 which will last until October 31.

Microsoft's email stated the change from Bing Rewards to Microsoft Rewards will be made automatically in the next few weeks. As with Bing Rewards, Microsoft Rewards will be limited to U.S. users

Check out the official FAQ page for Microsoft Rewards{.cta .large}

Thanks to Kyle for the tip!