Microsoft announced the tie-in through a blogpost, and said the firm has partnered with Encyclopedia Britannica to include answers derived from the Encyclopedia's data directly in the Bing results page.

The partnership comes after Encyclopedia Britannica announced it would stop producing print editions earlier this year in March. The move comes after 244 years of being in print.

When users search for a term using Bing, the results will show an overview of the topic, a thumbnail image and relevant facts about the subject. 

Franco Salvetti, principal development lead, Bing, said the search results will also pull in "direct links to other trusted sources".

Experts say this deal is a retort to Google's Knowledge Graph, which puts together information based on search results about certain topics. It shows a summary box about the topic with basic information and links for more data.

Salvetti added: "We’re very excited to collaborate with Encyclopedia Britannica as it continues to strengthen its online presence, and hope you find these new answers valuable and helpful in your search for information."