Below, a recap of stories posted today to the Search
Engine Watch Blog, along with other items we’ve spotted but not blogged
separately:
From The SEW Blog…
Danny’s On
Vacation
After I post the daily search headlines next, I’m officially on vacation for
the next two weeks. Barry Schwartz will own the blog, so to speak, in that
he’ll be doing most of the posting while I’m away. I’ll still be poking at
stuff for the SES Chicago conference, if you’re a speaker or waiting to hear
back from me on that. Other than that, I’m off to California with my family,
to remind my boys where Daddy’s from…….
Publishers & Authors Consolidate Lawsuits Against Google
MarketWatch reports that a judge has consolidated two different cases against
Google to make the process quicker and more “streamlined.” Book publishers and
book authors have joined together to battle Google on the legal from for
copyright infringement allegations over Google’s Book Search Project….
Searching Via Internet Explorer 7 & The Battle To Be The Default Search Engine
Now that Internet Explorer 7 has been released in final format, I wanted to
look at how search is being handled within the browser. There’s been lots of
discussion and worries about this in the past. Speculation time is over;
reality is here. In this article, how the IE7 search box works, how you can
change it and how Google and Yahoo’s toolbars behave within it to try and
maintain their default status, once gained. The biggest difference with
Internet Explorer 7 is the one that’s been most discussed, a visible search
box built into the “chrome.” In the picture…
Google
Hires Pizzella Of GSA’s FirstGov
FCW.com reports that Google hired M.J. Pizzella to work at Google’s Herndon,
VA office to “help Google better understand and solve the government’s
technology needs.” Pizzella worked as the associate administrator of GSA’s
Office of Citizen Services and Communications and was directly responsible for
government’s official search engine, FirstGov’s most recent redesign. Her
title at Google is senior business development manager at Google
Enterprise….
United
Press International Selling PageRank
Threadwatch reports that the United Press International is selling links based
on PageRank values. If you visit the advertising section, specifically for
text links you will clearly see UPI marketing those text links to manipulate
rankings and not for direct traffic building purposes like this: The benefits
they list include “increasing Page Rank” and “improving search engine
results.” Plus UPI listed out pages, with their current PageRank values and
backlink counts for marketing reasons. I have posted a screen capture at
Flickr to document the full page it before Google removes all value from the
links on this site. :-)…
Click
Fraud Dropping Amongst Google & Yahoo
News.com reports on a new Click Fraud Index study that shows the click fraud
rate dropping from 12.8 percent to 11.9 percent in the 3rd quarter amongst
top-tier PPC engines. Second-tier engines have realized an increase in click
fraud with 23.2 percent from 20.3 percent. Overall, click fraud is down at
13.8 percent from 14.1 percent, quarter to quarter….
Display
Your adCenter Ads On Microsoft’s Content Ads Network
The adCenter Blog has an open invitation to register for U.S. Content Ads. So
if you are an adCenter advertiser and you want your ads to be found on
Microsoft’s contextual network, you can apply for an invite here. Note, this
is not for publishers to sign up with Content Ads, but for advertisers to sign
up to place their existing ads on Content Ads. I have already begun testing
Content Ads myself. More details on content ads here….
Google
To Set Up 2nd R&D Office In Israel
Reuters reports that Google is going to open a second research and development
office in Israel. This office will be located in Tel Aviv, the current office
is based in Haifa. Yossi Matias, “a scientist and expert on algorithms,
databases and Internet technologies,” will head the Tel Aviv office up says
Reuters. Matias previously worked at Tel Aviv University and as a research
scientist at Bell Laboratories. The Tel Aviv office should be opening in early
2007….
Verizon
Announces SuperPages Spin Off, To Be Called “Idearc”
Ending several months of speculation Verizon announced yesterday that its
SuperPages unit would be spun off as a separate company, to be called,
somewhat awkwardly, “Idearc Inc.” According to a BusinessWeek article the name
is a combination of “idea” and “arc,” words that Verizon told the magazine
“symbolize how the directory business connects buyers and sellers.”…
More On
Instant Answers, from Microsoft
Part two of our four-part series on “instant answers” provided by Ask’s Smart
Answers, Yahoo’s Shortcuts, Google’s OneBox results and Microsoft’s Instant
Answers is featured in today’s SearchDay article, A Closer Look At Microsoft’s
Instant Answers. SEW correspondent Brian A. Smith offers an in-depth look at,
appropriately enough, the Microsoft’s Instant Answers featured on its newly
launched live.com search engine….
Google
AdWords Releases Website Optimizer for Advertisers
Google AdWords has released a new tool for advertisers to enable them to
easily test conversions on varying landing pages, headlines and ad copies. The
tool then shows advertisers the testing results, including graphs, allowing
them to chose the best converting ad options for their campaigns. Interested
advertisers can sign up for the beta here, although only a small number of
advertisers will be accepted. You can also learn more on the Inside AdWords
blog….
Ask.com
Using Paid Search On Google As Promotion
I reported at the Search Engine Roundtable that Ask.com Advertises on
Google.com To Promote Search Quality of Engine. A search on Raccoon brings up
an AdWords ad that is marketing Ask.com’s search results. Specifically, if you
click on the ad, you are taken to a search for the same keyword, Raccoon at
Ask.com. That search result sports a nice Ask Smart Answer. It is nice to see
Ask.com using paid search in this fashion to promote their own search
engine….
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your own behavior, consider how you complete transactions and how this has changed over the last 5
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