How To Buy Your Way Up Search Engine Results
from the hmmm... dept
It wasn't that long ago that I remember the FTC telling a bunch of search engine companies that they were going to get into big trouble if they didn't clearly label which search results are paid for. It appears that many in the search business ignored this letter and the FTC hasn't done much, because a new Business Week study shows that paid inclusions in search results are something of a scam. They're generally not talking about results from Google (which keeps paid inclusions separate). However, other search engines such as Looksmart and Inktomi apparently claim to represent fair searches, but give anyone who paid a boost. There's even an example where Inktomi contacted a small business owner about doing a paid inclusion. He did the math and realized that he would lose money at the price they wanted, so he declined. After that, his Inktomi ratings dropped off the charts and he disappeared from their searches - while he remained constant on Google. Those who support "paid inclusion" claim that it can lead to better results as well - but don't give any examples. Meanwhile, Business Week found plenty of examples of the opposite occurring.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
