Business Week article on search engine paid inclusions
Interesting article on search engines and paid inclusions in this week's edition of BusinessWeek.

Referring to paid inclusion:

"This practice is a booming business, one expected to double this year, to $200 million, and to reach $600 million by 2007, says U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray (USB ). But unlike the clearly marked advertised links that show up next to search results, these paid inclusions are virtually invisible to average Web surfers."

I know that paid inclusion has been a hot topic, but I think the article exaggerates a little with this:

"Controversy over paid inclusion is driving a wedge through the search industry. At the heart of the issue is whether the industry's content will be swayed by advertisers. Google, the leading search engine, steers clear of paid inclusions, saying that they undermine confidence in the objectivity of search results. Instead, Google relies entirely upon its technology for the search, and features paid ads only in clearly marked boxes near the search results. AOL uses Google technology and follows the same line. But others, including Yahoo, say that paid inclusion can provide users with better information. And they maintain that their search results are still displayed in order of relevance. That means that paid ads get no preferential treatment. "All listings are run through an algorithm that is blind to their source," says Tony Mamone, sales vice-president at LookSmart (LOOK ) Ltd., which feeds paid-inclusion results to portals like MSN."

BusinessWeek does back up its claims:

"Yet an investigation by BusinessWeek, based on more than 30 interviews and analysis of dozens of Internet searches, suggests that paying customers frequently fare better. Indeed, out of 20 advertisers and online marketing pros interviewed by BusinessWeek, 10 had experienced firsthand a boost in search-engine rankings when they signed up for paid inclusion."

Grab the latest issue of BusinessWeek for the full story. If you are subscriber you can view the articke online at BW Online | October 6, 2003 | Web Searches: The Fix Is In
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |