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SEARCHING FOR DISCLOSURE
How Search Engines Alert Consumers to the Presence of Advertising in Search Results
Part 3 of 3
SEARCHING FOR DISCLOSURE
How Search Engines Alert Consumers to the Presence of Advertising in Search Results
By Jørgen J. Wouters
November 8, 2004
Consumer Reports WebWatch
101 Truman Avenue
Yonkers, NY 10703-1057
Tel: 914.378.2600
www.ConsumerWebWatch.org
Part 3 of 3
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 47
MY WAY SEARCH
http://www.myway.com/
Dates tested: May 4
See Figure 15
Note: For the “My Way Search” evaluation, testers were
inadvertently supplied with the url for its sister site “My
Search.” As such, the following review was based solely
on the comments of the report’s author.
Paid Placement
My Way Search used paid placement and displayed
results from Google, among others. Like its sister site (“My
Search”), My Way Search allowed users to choose from
one of several search engines. Testing was done using
“LookSmart” since other options were addressed in testing
of other engines. Paid placement listings appeared at the
top of the results page and were disclosed with a heading.
Although the “Sponsored Listings” heading conveyed
the use of paid placement, the minuscule, light gray font
blended in with the page, making it easy to overlook.
Unlike its sister site, My Way Search did not offer users
a hyperlink to a disclosure page. Although information
about the various search engines could be found by
clicking on the “help center” link at the bottom of the
page and digging down several pages, there is no mention
of “Sponsored Listings.”
Paid Inclusion
When searching with “LookSmart,” My Way Search
used paid inclusion. Results were supplied by LookSmart
and disclosed with a heading: “LookSmart’s Directory.”
This wording wasn’t effective in indicating the use of paid
inclusion, and the tiny, gray font was easy to miss.
Although My Way Search did not provide a disclosure
hyperlink, information on LookSmart was found by clicking
on the “help center,” a small, blue hyperlink buried
in the bottom-right hand corner of the page. But the
process was laborious, and the disclosure was inadequate.
After much clicking and scrolling, one finally
arrived at a statement that acknowledged the presence of
paid inclusion listings within search results, but failed to
explain how they are ranked.
NETSCAPE SEARCH
http://netscape.com/search
Dates tested: May 1, 3 & 4
See Figure 16
RESULTS BY SEARCH ENGINE
Continued from Part 2
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 48
FIGURE 15: MY WAY SEARCH
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 49
Paid Placement
Netscape Search, which is owned by AOL, used paid
placement listings supplied by Google. These results
appeared at the top and bottom of the results page and
were distinguished from the main results by a heading
and hyperlink to a disclosure page.
All testers noted the eye-catching red “Sponsored Links”
heading (which, at the time this report was written, had
been changed to a less-obvious dark gray). Most testers
also believed the language effectively conveyed
paid placement.
Although all testers said the “About This” hyperlink suggested
the availability of a disclosure, several said the
small, gray hyperlink tended to blend in with the page.
(As with the heading, this font has since been made even
fainter since testing was concluded.)
Clicking on the “About This” hyperlink opened a pop-up
window. A disclosure of “Sponsored Links” was prominently
featured near the top and earned praise from
testers for being simple and straightforward. “Good
disclosure of paid placement,” said one. “It also includes
a link to Google for further information.”
One tester faulted Netscape for giving users a URL
for Google, rather than a clickable link, forcing users
to click away from the disclosure or manually open a
separate browser. “The Netscape disclosure says
‘For information on how Google determines relevancy
or to learn more about having your Web site appear
in this area, please go to http://www.google.com
and click on the ‘advertise with us’ link.’ But in following
the reference, I could find no such information,”
complained the tester.
Paid Inclusion
Netscape did not use paid inclusion. Main results, which
were grouped under the heading “Matching Sites”
and an “About This” hyperlink, were also provided
by Google.
Netscape sometimes uses “content promotion” in the
“Matching Sites” results, which included both Netscape
and sponsored results selected by in-house editors. As
with its sister site and owner AOL, Netscape’s use of
content promotion confused some testers, and led several
to incorrectly conclude the site used paid inclusion,
such as this one:
“It is not possible to easily identify paid inclusion in
Netscape search results; however, the following phrase
indicates the possibility of paid inclusion: ‘Text search
results may be preceded by a visually distinct graphic
containing information related to your search query, our
research staff selects this information or accepts sponsored
information powered by a third-party.’”
The previously noted difficulty in determining whether
Google used paid inclusion (it does not) fueled further
uncertainty.
“I can’t tell if they use paid inclusion because they get
some links from Google, and I can’t tell if Google uses
paid inclusion,” said another tester. “I don’t think they
do, but they don’t really say on the Google site.”
OVERTURE
http://www.content.overture.com
Dates tested: May 1, 3 & 4
See Figure 17
Paid Placement
Overture, which is owned by Yahoo, used paid placement
almost exclusively, and supplied its own results. Paid
placement listings typically dominated the results
pages—particularly for more commercial searches—
and were identified on a result-by-result basis with headings
hyperlinked to a disclosure pop-up.
Most testers said the “Sponsored Listing” headings—
which appeared after the URL on the last line of the listing
and feature a small, pale blue font within parentheses—
contrasted only slightly with the page and were,
therefore, difficult to find. “Sponsored links are not very
obvious, since they all appear in one long list with other
search results, with ‘sponsored listing’ in very small
type,” said one tester.
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 50
FIGURE 16: NETSCAPE SEARCH
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 51
All but one tester said the headings suggested paid
placement, but most did not believe the hyperlinked
headings clearly indicated the availability of a disclosure
as effectively as separate headings and hyperlinks. One
tester praised the placement of a disclosure link after
each result.
Clicking on any of the hyperlinked headings opened a
pop-up window headlined “Sponsored Listing,” which
contained the paid placement disclosure. Most testers
liked the wording of the disclosure, using terms such
as “clear, concise.”
“Overture is very careful to present their search results
in an honest way, not attempting to obfuscate the fact that
the results appearing at the start of a results set are paid
placement entries,” said another. “Whatever one might
think of the search engine, the candor with which the paid
placement information is disclosed is refreshing.”
One tester, however, complained the disclosure was not
designed with consumers in mind. “There is a link to a
‘How Overture Works’ page that is very slow loading
(over two minutes on my dial-up), requires Flash, comes
from a third-party site, requires sound and plays extremely
slowly,” said the tester, who also found the disclosure
less than simple and straightforward. “Definitely not—it is
puffery designed to sell placements.”
Paid Inclusion
Overture used paid inclusion, although to a much lesser
extent than paid placement. These results were supplied
by Inktomi, which—like Overture—is owned by Yahoo.
Paid inclusion listings were identified on a result-by-result
basis with headings hyperlinked to a disclosure page.
None of the testers believed the “Additional Listing”
headings adequately conveyed the use of paid inclusion.
And because these headings were identical to those for
paid placement in terms of look and feel, most testers
faulted them for failing to clearly stand out.
Clicking on the hyperlink opened a pop-up window
headlined “Additional Listing,” which contained only the
paid inclusion disclosure. Reviews were mixed. While
one tester praised Overture for its “clear and succinct
explanation” of paid inclusion, another expressed uncertainty:
“It is not clear whether paid inclusion is being hinted
at in the disclosure under ‘additional listings.’ ”
One tester questioned the accuracy of the following
sentence: “These sites are ranked using an algorithm
applied to all listings within each section, with no change
in rank due to payment.” Notes the tester: “It fails
to disclose that paying for a listing may give the advertiser
information about the selection algorithm or advice
on how to change their pages to benefit from the
search algorithm.”
WEB SEARCH
http://www.websearch.com
Dates tested: April 30, May 3, 4 & 5
See Figure 18
Paid Placement
Web Search used paid placement and displayed results
from Google, Overture, Ah-ha, FindWhat and Kanoodle.
The meta-search engine allowed users to view results on
an engine-by-engine basis or by relevance. Testers were
asked to conduct searches by relevance. Paid placement
listings were interspersed throughout the results page
without any headings and were only disclosed with a
single hyperlink at the bottom of the page.
Some months after the testing was conducted, Web
Search altered its results page to identify paid placement
on a listing-by-listing basis, much like Overture and
InfoSpace. The site now places the phrase “Sponsored
by” before the URL of each paid placement listing—
using an identical font size and color. The site, however,
continues to rely on a single hyperlink at the bottom of
the page, and the disclosure page remains unchanged.
All testers noted the lack of any heading, and most said
the “About Results” hyperlink—located at the bottom of
the page in a faint, gray font—was easy to miss, since it
blended in with the page and was one of nine links. All,
however, agreed that it indicated the availability of
an explanation.
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 52
FIGURE 17: OVERTURE
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 53
FIGURE 18: WEB SEARCH
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 54
Clicking the link took users to an “About Results?” page
containing all the disclosures. A blanket statement
explained “Sponsored Sites” would occur with greater
frequency than what it called “Matching Sites” for more
commercial searches, before proceeding to a paid placement
disclosure. Most testers said Web Search’s disclosure
fell short of the mark in every respect.
“Most people would never see the disclosure,” said one
tester. “Paid placement is disclosed neither clearly nor
conspicuously, with no attempt to label or delineate
results,” said another.
“As with the other meta-search sites, it is difficult to know
the provenance of each link and therefore difficult to
discover paid placement at work,” remarked another.
“Additionally, without having sponsored sites and
matching sites visibly segregated from one another, it
is hard to come to any conclusions about the paid
placement program.”
Paid Inclusion
Web Search used paid inclusion and received results
from AllTheWeb, Yahoo, Alta Vista, Ask Jeeves and
Inktomi. The meta-search engine allowed users to view
results on an engine-by-engine basis or by relevance,
which was how the testers were asked to conduct searches.
As with paid placement results, paid inclusion listings
were interspersed throughout the results page without
any headings and were disclosed with a single hyperlink
at the bottom of the page.
Because Web Search used the same “About Results”
heading to disclose paid inclusion, testers again found
fault with its location at the bottom of the page as one of
nine, hard-to-spot hyperlinks.
Clicking on the hyperlink took users to an “About
Results?” page containing all the disclosures. The page
explained “Matching Sites” would occur with greater
frequency in searches of a more non-commercial nature
and might contain paid inclusion listings, which it confusingly
refers to as “Sponsored Sites.”
All but one tester indicated the use of paid inclusion, but
most found fault with the nature of the disclosure. “Web
Search is yet another search engine attempting to
harness the power of the Internet by displaying results
from several search engines, some of which themselves
use other sites for their content source,” noted one
tester. “As a result, it is more difficult than ever to trace
back which results may have been included as a result
of payment.”
“This seems to be the only search engine that mixes paid
placement and paid inclusion without any attempt whatsoever
to distinguish one type of listing from the other,”
complained another. “The disclosure is also confusing for
its use of the term ‘sponsored sites’ to describe both paid
inclusion and paid placement listings.”
YAHOO! SEARCH
http://search.yahoo.com
Dates tested: April 30, May 4 & 5
See Figure 19
Paid Placement
Yahoo Search used paid placement results from its
Overture subsidiary. Visually, paid placement results
appeared at the top and bottom of the results page and
were separated from other results by a heading, hyperlink
to a disclosure page, and thin red horizontal
borders. (These red borders have been changed to light
gray since testing concluded.) Paid placement results also
occurred in the right-hand column, under a non-hyperlinked
heading in blue-shaded boxes.
Yahoo sometimes promoted its own content at the very
top of the results page, under the heading “Inside
Yahoo!,” which it acknowledged in the disclosure page.
Unlike other engines that used content promotion,
Yahoo’s straightforward placement and labeling seemed
to preclude any confusion among testers.
All testers applauded the easy-to-spot, bold red “Sponsor
Results” heading, and all but one said the terminology
clearly conveyed the engine’s use of paid placement.
One tester, however, noted the heading above the righthand
column was not nearly as noticeable.
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 55
FIGURE 19: YAHOO
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 56
“On the left it is red on white background—very clear,”
said the tester. “On the right, it is light gray on white,
much less so. But the right-side results are boxed and
shaded, so the overall effect is clear.” (Since testing concluded,
this bold red heading has been changed to a
faint gray font that changes to dark blue when rolled over
with a cursor.)
All testers agreed the “What’s this?” hyperlink—which
no longer exists on the site—indicated the availability
of a disclosure statement. All but one said the link—
a small, blue, underlined font inside parentheses—
caught one’s attention. ‘ “What’s This’ is (finally) simple,
direct and clear language,” noted one tester approvingly.
Another tester, however, noted the “Sponsored
Results” in the right-hand column did not offer
a hyperlink.
Clicking on the hyperlink took users to a page containing
all disclosures. Paid placement was explained under the
heading “Sponsor Results,” and most testers found the
language simple and straightforward. “Paid placement is
clearly and conspicuously disclosed with unusually large
and colorful headers and bright lines delineating different
sections of the results page,” said another.
“Disclosure is clear and to the point.”
One tester, however, said the disclosure was unnecessarily
complicated because of hyperlinks that “made it a
maze to see more of the disclosure.” Clicking on these
links, the tester noted, took the user to a number of
pages, which contained either the same information or
information aimed at advertisers.
“It is hard to track down the full text,” complained the
tester. “Even then, to read further, you must read the material
intended for those who want to be sponsors—a long
set of linked pages. Confusingly conflates information for
users with that for those who want to be sponsors.”
Paid Inclusion
Yahoo Search used paid inclusion and provided its own
results. Paid inclusion results appeared between the paid
placement listings and were distinguished from other
results by a heading, hyperlink to a disclosure page, and
thin red horizontal borders (now light gray).
None of the testers believed the “Top 20 Web Results”
heading adequately conveyed the use of paid inclusion,
but all noted the easy-to-spot, bold red heading. As with
paid placement, all reviewers believed the “What’s this?”
link—which no longer exists on the site—clearly signified
the availability of an explanation, and all but one said it
effectively contrasted with the page.
Clicking on the hyperlink took users to a separate page
containing all disclosures. Paid inclusion was explained
under the heading “Web Results.” Testers had mixed feelings
about Yahoo’s paid inclusion disclosure, ranging
from ringing praise to harsh criticism.
“Paid inclusion is clearly and conspicuously disclosed,”
said one. “Very solid and clear explanation of, and
differentiation between, Sponsor Results and Web
Results,” said another.
One tester noted the disclosure says “more than 99%” of
Web pages in the Yahoo index are included for free, but
acknowledged that results may also include sites participating
in a paid inclusion program. “Thus it is difficult to
say for any given search whether the results show some
sites which have paid for inclusion,” said the tester.
“Yahoo does indicate that participation in CAP [Content
Acquisition Program] does not guarantee placement
or ranking.”
Another tester said the disclosure is “buried beyond some
puffery about the service,” and complained the disclosure
text was set with fixed line length that does not wordwrap
if the window is resized. This makes it difficult for
consumers to read the full disclosure language easily.
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 57
Based on the findings of this study, WebWatch makes the
following recommendations to the search engine industry
in the interest of better alerting consumers to the presence
and impact of advertising on search engine results.
Many of these recommendations echo and underscore
those made by the FTC. But we believe some are worth
restating here because of the lackluster compliance
among many of the engines we reviewed. WebWatch
does not begrudge the right of search engines to generate
revenue through advertising, but urges them to clearly
indicate and explain to consumers the presence and
impact of advertising upon search results.
Search engines should:
�� Enhance the visibility of disclosure headings and
hyperlinks by using larger fonts and brighter colors
that clearly contrast with the page and catch the
attention of consumers, thereby inducing them to
click and read further.
�� Avoid separating hyperlinks from headings, which,
as the FTC suggested and this study discovered,
increases the chance users will fail to find
disclosure. Headings, hyperlinks and disclosure
pages are meant to function as a self-guided,
RECOMMENDATIONS
WEBWATCH DOES NOT
BEGRUDGE THE RIGHT
OF SEARCH ENGINES TO
GENERATE REVENUE
THROUGH ADVERTISING,
BUT URGES THEM TO
CLEARLY INDICATE AND
EXPLAIN THE IMPACT OF
ADVERTISING UPON
SEARCH RESULTS.
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 58
informational pathway. A heading should catch the
user’s attention and draw it to an adjacent hyperlink,
which hopefully will encourage a click to the
disclosure.
�� Review the wording of disclosures to ensure the
language is simple, straightforward and easy to
understand by the average consumer.
�� Make entire disclosures available to consumers
after the first click, thereby eliminating the need for
any further scrolling, clicking or searching, which
can be confusing and cumbersome.
�� Provide the same level of disclosure for paid placement
that they generally do for paid inclusion, i.e.
with a hyperlink to a separate disclosure page.
�� Clarify what, if any, financial relationship exists
between them and businesses mentioned within
disclosures and/or on the site.
�� Acknowledge when paid placement or paid inclusion
isn’t used by the engine so as to avoid any
possible misunderstanding and misjudgments.
�� Be more clear about the practice of content promotion
and disclose the role paid search plays in marketing
programs.
In addition, meta-search engines, which display results
from other search engines, should:
�� Strive to provide the same level of disclosure
offered by the sites they search, so users are not
forced to sacrifice transparency for convenience.
Because meta-engines tend to omit the existing disclosure
language from the sites they search, consumers
are often left in the dark about the influence
of advertising on their results.
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 59
Search engines provide a valuable service to millions of
consumers each day, providing instant access to limitless
amounts of information. But as you log on to your favorite
search engine next time, bear in mind the following tips,
which are based on a similar list published in the 2003
Consumer Reports WebWatch report “False Oracles:
Consumer Reaction to Learning the Truth About How
Search Engines Work”:
1. Make Choices: Before bookmarking a search engine,
figure out if it uses paid placement (which it almost
certainly does) or paid inclusion (which it may or
may not), and consider the impact of either practice on
your searching. If you’re conducting a commercial
search, you may seek out paid listings, just as a newspaper
reader looking for a specific product or service
turns to the classifieds. But if you’re looking for
objective, unbiased information, you may decide that
only a purely algorithmic search devoid of paid listings
will suffice.
2. Use Multiple Search Engines: Many consumers tend to
rely almost exclusively on a favorite search engine.
But the next time you conduct a search with major
implications, such as for health or financial information,
consider repeating the same search on several engines
before making a final decision. Compare the results you
receive from various sites and be mindful that any results
appearing above, below or along the right-hand side of
the “Web” listings are probably advertising. Further, try
comparing “Web” results from a search engine that uses
paid inclusion and one that does not.
3. Beware Meta-Search Engines: Meta-search engines
offer the ability to search and display listings from several
search engines simultaneously, saving consumers time
and trouble. But their convenience sometimes bears a
price in the form of poor disclosure and skewed results
favoring paid listings. Because meta-search engines tend
to cull the top listings from each engine, they’re far more
likely to display mostly paid listings—often without disclosures.
Identifying paid inclusion within meta-search
engines results is even more difficult, since engines tend
not to provide any kind of separate disclosure necessary
to identify its use. Some meta-engines indirectly disclose
paid inclusion by mentioning sites that supply them
with results. Chances are good at least one uses
paid inclusion.
4. Click Beyond the First Page: Don’t settle for the
first page of search results. Try to dig several pages
deep before you decide to click on a result, or at least,
CONSUMER TIPS
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 60
before you finish clicking on results. You might find the
product or information you’re looking for buried many
pages down.
5. Look for Disclosure Headings: Keep your eyes peeled
for signs that a search result has been influenced by
advertising dollars. Paid placement listings tend to be
found above, below or to the right-hand side of main
results. Look for telltale headings such as “sponsored
links” or “sponsored sites,” as well as shaded boxes, borders
or other graphical elements that may distinguish
them from other results. Paid inclusion listings are found
in main results, and are often grouped under headings
such as “Web results” or “Web pages.”
6. Look for Disclosure Hyperlinks: Each search engine
discloses paid placement and paid inclusion differently—
and some make it harder to find this information than
others. Although search engines are not required to
disclose paid placement beyond a clear heading, many
offer hyperlinks to disclosure pages. Look for hyperlinks
near disclosure headings, which tend to tend to be small,
faintly colored and use labels such as “about” or “info.”
These link to separate pages or pop-up windows that
explain how results are generated. Even if a site fails to
clearly disclose its paid placement or paid inclusion listings,
you may be able to find this information by digging
through the help pages.
7. Read the Disclosure Pages: Statements of disclosure
often make for tedious reading, and, like legalese, sometimes
seem written to discourage reading. Persevere and
take the time to read and absorb the implications of these
statements. Paid placement and paid inclusion are often
described using a variety of marketing lingo and corporate
branding. Paid placement can be described with
terms such as “pay-for-placement,” “pay-per-click,” “costper-
click,” or “pay for performance.” Very few disclosures
of paid inclusion actually use the phrase “paid
inclusion,” and sometimes bury any such mention near
the end of a lengthy explanation. Ignore the jargon and
acronyms and look for keywords such as “inclusion.”
8. Learn to Identify Content Promotion: Some major
search engines use “content promotion,” which can
include images and/or links to internal or advertiser content.
Content promotion is typically inserted above either
the paid placement or paid inclusion results, and sometimes
occurs under a separate heading. Although content
promotion is technically different from paid placement
or paid inclusion, it can include links to advertisers
paying to get you attention. Look for a disclosure and
read it carefully.
PAID INCLUSION
LISTINGS ARE FOUND
IN MAIN RESULTS, AND
ARE OFTEN GROUPED
UNDER HEADINGS SUCH
AS “WEB RESULTS” OR
“WEB PAGES.”
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 61
APPENDIX A:
TESTING BACKGROUND
QUERY TERMS USED*
PAIR 1 CHEAP HOTELS + LOS ANGELES
PAIR 2 EUROPE + TOURS
BLACKJACK
PAIR 3 AUTO INSURANCE + NEW JERSEY
BREAST CANCER
PAIR 4 BUY + MUTUAL FUNDS
ATKINS DIET
PAIR 5 TECHNOLOGY JOBS + SAN FRANCISCO
VIAGRA
PAIR 6 DIGITAL CAMERAS
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
* Because this study focused on the manner in which search engines
disclose their results - rather than the nature of those results - queries
were not chosen in a scientific manner. Search terms were instead
chosen for timeliness, perceived popularity and for a balance
between commercial and informational topics. A search engine's
disclosure of paid placement or paid inclusion never varies from
query to query. As such, each tester was randomly assigned a pair
of queries per search engine on a rotating basis.
FIGURE 20
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 62
Nancy Alcorn
Nancy Alcorn is Assistant Director of the Newburyport,
Mass., Public Library, a position that coordinates the
library’s patron services and overall technology infrastructure.
Her particular interest area is adaptive technology.
Alcorn is a graduate of Brown University (English
and American Literature) and the University of Rhode
Island (Library and Information Studies).
M. Carl Drott
M. Carl Drott, Ph.D., is a tenured Professor at Drexel
University’s College of Information Science and
Technology. He has written two books and numerous articles
on topics including information resources management,
research design and statistical analysis, information
systems analysis and web page design and evaluation.
He has also published software that teaches grammar
to students.
Drott is acting editor and review editor at the Journal of
the American Society for Information Science. A member
of Alpha Phi Mu, the Industrial Engineering Honorary
Society, and a National Science Foundation Trainee,
Drott is also a Xerox Fellow in Information Science.
He received the Lindback Foundation Award for
Distinguished Teaching.
Deborah Wassertzug
Deborah Wassertzug has been the librarian for the
Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism since
1998. In this capacity, she provides research consultation
assistance to students and faculty of the School, and
conducts regular training sessions on research skills. She
also coordinates Columbia University Libraries’ live
chat reference service. She was formerly employed
at the University of Michigan Libraries, working with
Geographic Information Systems in the Map Library. She
holds a bachelor’s degree in French and Italian
Literature, as well as a Master’s in Library Science, from
the University of Maryland College Park.
Linda Whang
Linda Whang is Engineering Instructional Services
Librarian at the University of Washington in Seattle,
Wash., a position she has held since 2001. Prior to
working at the UW, Linda was the Engineering Librarian
at SUNY Binghamton from 1999-2001, and worked at
the medical and public health libraries at the University
of Michigan from 1995 -1999. She holds a BS in Biology
from Cornell University and a Master’s degree in Library
Science from SUNY Buffalo.
APPENDIX B: TESTER PROFILES
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 63
Reviewer: _______________________________
Date: ___________________________________
Search Engine: ___________________________
Search Terms: ____________________________
PAID PLACEMENT
The FTC recommends that search engines using
paid placement clearly delineate these results as
such, whether they are segregated from, or inserted
into, non-paid listings. To evaluate whether paid placement
search results are distinguished from non-paid
results with clear and conspicuous disclosures, one
must examine:
1. Paid Placement Listings
a. Does the search engine use
paid placement? Yes �� No ��
b. Are paid placement listings
segregated from non-paid
placement listings? Yes �� No ��
c. Where are paid placement listings located?
(check all that apply)
�� Above non-paid placement listings ��
�� Below non-paid placement listings ��
�� In the right-hand column ��
2. Disclosure Headings
a. Is the disclosure heading near
the paid placement search results? Yes �� No ��
b. How is the disclosure heading labeled?
(actual wording)
______________________________________________
c. Does the label convey that the
results are paid placement listings? Yes �� No ��
d. Is the disclosure heading as
large as the search result listings? Yes �� No ��
e. Does the disclosure heading contrast—or blend in—
with the background?
______________________________________________
APPENDIX C:
DISCLOSURE QUESTIONNAIRE
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 64
3. Disclosure Hyperlinks
a. Is there a disclosure page accessible
via an obvious hyperlink? Yes �� No ��
b. Is the disclosure hyperlink adjacent
to the disclosure heading? Yes �� No ��
c. How is the disclosure hyperlink labeled?
(actual wording)
______________________________________________
d. Does the label indicate the
availability of an explanation
(i.e. a disclosure page)? Yes �� No ��
e. Does the disclosure hyperlink contrast—or blend in—
with the background?
______________________________________________
4. Disclosure Pages
a. Does the hyperlink take users
directly to a disclosure page? Yes �� No ��
b. Is the disclosure displayed
prominently? Yes �� No ��
c. Does the page contain the
complete disclosure? Yes �� No ��
d. Is the disclosure simple
and straightforward? Yes �� No ��
5. Accuracy
Is any statement made anywhere within
the search engine site that might mislead
consumers as to the basis on which a
search result is generated? Yes �� No ��
6. Overall
Any comments or observations?
______________________________________________
PAID INCLUSION
The FTC recommends that search engines using paid
inclusion programs clearly describe how sites are selected
for inclusion in their listings, and whether such programs
distort search result rankings. To evaluate whether
the use of paid inclusion is clearly and conspicuously
explained and disclosed, one must examine:
1. Paid Inclusion Results
Does the search engine use paid
inclusion? Yes �� No ��
2. Disclosure Headings
a. Is the disclosure heading near
the paid inclusion search results? Yes �� No ��
b. How is the disclosure heading labeled? (actual wording)
______________________________________________
c. Does the label convey the use of paid
inclusion within the search results? Yes �� No ��
d. Is the disclosure heading as large
as the listings? Yes �� No ��
e. Does the disclosure heading contrast—or blend in—
with the background?
______________________________________________
3. Disclosure Hyperlinks
a. Is there a disclosure page accessible
via an obvious hyperlink? Yes �� No ��
b. Is the disclosure hyperlink adjacent
to the disclosure heading? Yes �� No ��
c. How is the disclosure hyperlink labeled?
(actual wording)
______________________________________________
d. Does the label indicate the
availability of an explanation
(i.e. a disclosure page)? Yes �� No ��
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 65
e. Does the disclosure hyperlink contrast—or blend in—
with the background?
______________________________________________
4. Disclosure Pages
a. Does the hyperlink take users
directly to a disclosure page? Yes �� No ��
b. Is the disclosure displayed
prominently? Yes �� No ��
c. Does the page contain the
complete disclosure? Yes �� No ��
d. Is the disclosure simple and
straightforward? Yes �� No ��
5. Accuracy
Is any statement made anywhere
within the search engine site that
might mislead consumers as to the
basis on which a search result is
generated? Yes �� No ��
6. Overall
Any comments or observations?
______________________________________________
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 66
Below is the exact language appearing in the disclosure
statements and headings of search engines tested for this
study. When disclosures were handled on a separate
page, urls have also been provided. For search engines
that make disclosures via a pop-up window, only the text
has been provided.
All data were collected on May 6, 2004, and may have
changed.
Although a separate disclosure page for paid placement
is not necessary for compliance with FTC recommendations,
many search engines offered them anyway, and
they have been reproduced below where provided. All
search engines tested used paid placement, but not all
used paid inclusion; those that do not are indicated by
“N/A.” Two sites tested that do not use paid inclusion
(AOL & Netscape) provided statements explaining how
their results were generated, which have been added
below as well.
1ST BLAZE
http://www.1stblaze.com
Paid Placement
No disclosure heading or disclosure page.
Paid Inclusion
No disclosure heading or disclosure page.
ALTA VISTA
http://www.altavista.com
Paid Placement
“Sponsored Matches”
http://www.altavista.com/help/search/types_web#1
Sponsor Results are sites that pay for placement in search
results on terms that are relevant to their business. These
listings are provided by Overture Services, a wholly
owned subsidiary of Yahoo!, and appear on Alta Vista
Search results pages.
You’ll see Sponsor Results when they’re relevant to the
APPENDIX D: SEARCH ENGINES’
DISCLOSURE STATEMENTS
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 67
specific search terms you used. For example, if you
search for “digital cameras,” you’ll see Sponsor Results
for web sites that provide information about or sell digital
cameras. The Alta Vista Search results pages separate
Sponsor Results from other results so you can tell them
apart. For more information please see Sponsor Results
or, if you are interested in participating in this program,
please see Overture Advertising.
These results are then distributed to 85% of active Internet
users through some of the world’s most popular and wellknown
Web sites. Overture is a leading provider of payfor-
performance search. For additional information on
listing with Overture for distribution on Alta Vista and
other top search sites, please click here.
Paid Inclusion
“Alta Vista Results”
http://www.altavista.com/help/search/types_web#1
Web Results are the most relevant web pages found by
Yahoo! Search Technology in response to your search
terms. Web Results are generated from the billions of
web pages crawled and indexed by Yahoo! Search. The
Yahoo! Search index is more than 99% populated
through the free web crawl process. Results may also
include links to sites that participate in the Content
Acquisition Program (CAP). CAP enables content
providers to submit web pages and content directly to
Yahoo! for review and inclusion within the Yahoo! Search
index through the Site MatchTM or Inktomi Search
SubmitTM programs. Sites from both of these programs
pay to be included in the search engine index, and those
participating in Site Match also pay to be reviewed for
relevance. Results may also include links to sites that participate
in the Alta Vista Express Inclusion Program. Sites
from this program also pay to be included in the search
engine index and reviewed for relevance. Participation
in CAP or Express Inclusion has no bearing on placement
or ranking in search results.
Note: Inktomi Search Submit TM is being discontinued in
conjunction with the launch of Site MatchTM. The Alta
Vista Express Inclusion program has also been discontinued.
Legacy Express Inclusion customers will continue to
receive distribution on the historical Alta Vista network
until their subscriptions expire. Search results will include
links from the Search Submit program only through
April 15, 2004.
AOL SEARCH
http://search.aol.com/aolcom/index.jsp
Paid Placement
“Sponsored Links”
http://search.aol.com/aolcom/about.jsp#sl
Sponsored Links - Search:
“Sponsored Links” are listings that have been
purchased by companies that want to have their sites
appear for specific search terms. These listings are
administered, sorted and maintained by Google (AOL’s
search partner). For information about how Google sorts
these listings, go to http://adwords.google.com/ and
click on the ‘Advertise with Us’ link.
Sponsored Links - Content:
“Sponsored Links” are listings that have been
purchased by companies that want to have their sites
appear for specific search terms and related content.
These listings are administered, sorted and maintained
by third parties and not endorsed by AOL.
Paid Inclusion
N/A
The following statement explains AOL’s main results:
Matching Sites:
These results may contain objectionable material not
endorsed by AOL. Matching Sites are Web sites, listed
in order of relevance (listings with the highest relevance
appear first). These listings are administered, sorted
and maintained by Google, AOL’s search partner. For
information about how Google sorts these listings, go
to http://www.google.com/about.html and click on
the “Our Technology” link. In addition, news stories
related to your search may appear in the listings.
These results are supplied by CNN, an AOL/Time
Warner company.
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 68
ASK JEEVES
http://www.ask.com
Paid Placement
“Sponsored Web Results”
http://sp.ask.com/docs/about/spons_webr.html
“Sponsored Web Results” are provided by Google®, a
third-party provider of pay for performance search
listings. Google generates highly relevant sponsored
results by allowing advertisers to bid for placement in
this area based on relevant keywords. These results,
which are powered by Google’s advanced algorithms,
are then distributed across the Internet to some of
the world’s most popular and well-known Web sites,
including Ask Jeeves.
Paid Inclusion
“Web Results”
http://sp.ask.com/docs/about/web_searchr.html
Ask Jeeves delivers its primary search results using Teoma
search technology. These search results appear under the
heading “Web Results.” Teoma search technology uses
sophisticated algorithms and a unique approach to
organizing and analyzing the Web to generate relevant
and authoritative search results. In some instances companies
pay to have their Web sites included within
Teoma’s dataset, otherwise known as the Teoma Index.
Like all Web sites, these sites are processed through
Teoma’s search algorithms and are not guaranteed placement
in the results. This ensures that relevancy is the primary
driver of results. For more information about Teoma
search, visit: http://www.teoma.com.
CNET SEARCH
http://www.search.com
Paid Placement
“Sponsored Links.”
No disclosure page
Paid Inclusion
No disclosure heading or disclosure page.
GOOGLE
http://www.google.com
Paid Placement
“Sponsored Links”
No disclosure page
Paid Inclusion
N/A
INFOSPACE WEB SEARCH
http://www.infospace.com/home/search
Paid Placement
“Sponsored by”
http://www.infospace.com/home/search/help/aboutre
sults.htm?ver=17
Pay-For-Placement:
These results are returned based on sponsors who pay
for their placement within a relevant results set. For
instance, a car parts dealer might pay to have their
company’s results returned when a user searched on a
term related to car repair. These listings are denoted with
the text “Sponsored By” to the right of the site URL.
Pay-For-Placement engines include: Overture, Sprinks
and FindWhat.
Paid Inclusion
No disclosure heading or disclosure page.
LYCOS NETWORK SEARCH
http://www.lycos.com
Paid Placement
“Sponsored Links”
(Disclosure made via a pop-up)
Sponsored links is a section that features paid links from
Lycos partners. The partner links are near the top of the
page as well as on the right-hand side. At times, you may
find additional sponsored links at the bottom of the
web results.
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 69
Paid Inclusion
“Web Results”
(Disclosure made via a pop-up)
Lycos Web Results are brought to you by Inktomi.
Inktomi’s results are relevant and on-target, designed to
give you what you’re looking for. In addition, Looksmart’s
editorally- reviewed results are within the first ten results if
relevant. Lycos also integrates editorial content from the
Lycos Network as the first result only if content is available
or relevant. It will be labeled as “from the Lycos Network”
next to the result/component. The Web results also
includes paid inclusion brought to you by Looksmart
and FAST. To find more information about the paid
inclusion program please visit http://insite.lycos.com or
http://www.looksmart.com.
Participation in Lycos InSite, our paid inclusion
program, does not improve placement in the search
results. Lycos search results powered by Inktomi appear
in order based upon their relevancy algorithm. The
program offers web site owners guaranteed site submission
and 24-48 hour content refresh. For more information
about the program or to submit your site please
visit http://insite.lycos.com.
MSN SEARCH
http://www.search.msn.com
Paid Placement
“Sponsored Sites”
Initial disclosure made via a pop-up:
Web site links paid for by a third party and provided to
MSN Search by that party.
Additional disclosure via “About Sponsored Sites search
results” hyperlink:
You may get search results under the heading
Sponsored Sites when you perform a basic search.
Sponsored Sites are links paid for by a third party,
and are provided to MSN Search and other web
search engines by that party. The third party ranks
the sites based on bids received from advertisers, and
on their relevance to specific search words and phrases.
Paid Inclusion
“Web Pages”
Initial disclosure made via a pop-up:
Internet-wide websites that best match your search words.
Additional disclosure via “About Web Page search
results” hyperlink:
Web Page search results include all Internet-wide websites
that best match your search words. Web Page
search results are obtained when you type search words
into the text box on an MSN Search page (such as the
MSN Search home page), and then click Search. Web
page search results can be generated from a basic
search and from an advanced search.
MY SEARCH
http://www.mysearch.com/jsp/home.jsp
Paid Placement
“Sponsored Listings”
(Disclosure made via a pop-up)
Sponsored Listings are search results paid for by
sponsors or advertisers, including those obtained through
sponsored listing services offered by Google and other
companies. For any searches that return Sponsored
Listings, you will find Sponsored Listings at the top of that
search provider’s results page -immediately above general
search results. Will results from every My Search page
have Sponsored Listings? No, not every search request
will necessarily include Sponsored Listings.
Paid Inclusion
“Web Results”
(Disclosure made via a pop-up)
In the “Web Pages Found” area on AlltheWeb search
results pages, Web content that has been crawled and
indexed by FAST, and then ranked and displayed
according to advanced relevancy ranking algorithms, is
shown in response to user queries. Within the current 2.1
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 70
billion web pages indexed from which the “Web Pages
Found” results are drawn, less than one percent (<1%) of
these include specific web pages that a content provider
has paid FAST to crawl and index on a regular basis.
This < 1% of paid for inclusion (PFI) URLs become useful
to search engine users because FAST is able to more
deeply index information from within these sources such
as database information that is not typically accessible to
general crawlers. All “Web Pages Found” results are
delivered and ranked according to FAST’s advanced
ranking algorithms, and PFI providers do not receive
preferential ranking.
MY WAY SEARCH
http://www.myway.com
Paid Placement
“Sponsored Listings”
No disclosure page.
Paid Inclusion
“LookSmart’s Directory”
http://help.myway.com/features/searchfaq.html#l1
The following disclosure is made three clicks away from
the bottom of the search page:
What are LookSmart “Reviewed Web Results”? Reviewed
Web Results are listings that have been evaluated by
LookSmart editors. The Reviewed Web Results section of
search results includes Web sites selected by LookSmart’s
professional editorial team, editorially-reviewed paid listings
from LookSmart’s advertising partners, and non-commercial
sites contributed by Zeal community members. All
listings are held to the same quality standards, whether
they are commercial or noncommercial.
NETSCAPE SEARCH
http://channels.netscape.com/ns/search/default.jsp
Paid Placement
“Sponsored Links”
(Disclosure made via a pop-up)
Sponsored Links:
These are paid links provided by Google.com.
The results displayed in this area are based on the search
terms you enter. Google works to ensure that these links
are relevant to your search terms by using a combination
of search technology and editorial review. For information
on how Google determines relevancy or to learn
more about having your web site appear in this area,
please go to http://www.google.com and click on the
‘advertise with us’ link.
Paid Inclusion
N/A.
The following statement explains Netscape’s non-paid
placement results:
Matching Results:
Our web results are a blend of some of the best content
available from Netscape and the World Wide Web.
Netscape Search results contain links that are handpicked
by our research staff, plus links that are provided
by Google, one of the most respected search
engines on the Web. We organize and rank the results
in the following manner:
�� Our knowledgeable research staff selects the most relevant
links to display first.
�� Web pages and links from the entire web universe
appear following the above items and make up the
bulk of matching results.
�� Text search results may be preceded by a visually distinct
graphic containing information related to your
search query. Our research staff selects this information
or accepts sponsored information powered by
a third-party.
OVERTURE
http://www.content.overture.com
Paid Placement
“Sponsored Listing”
(Disclosure made via a pop-up)
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 71
With Overture Sponsored Listings, advertisers bid for
placement within search results and are ranked according
to their bid. Advertisers pay each time a customer
clicks on their listing on our Web site or across our affiliate
network. To learn more about how Overture works
and our affiliate partnerships, please visit How Overture
Works. If you are a current Overture advertiser and want
to view current bids, use the View Bids Tool.
Paid Inclusion
“Additional Listing”
(Disclosure made via a pop-up)
Within Additional Listings, which are provided by
Inktomi, there may be links for which the Web site
owners have paid for either expedited review of their site
and /or paid for clicks to their site. These sites are
ranked using an algorithm applied to all listings within
each section, with no change in rank due to payment.
WEB SEARCH
http://www.websearch.com
Paid Placement
No disclosure heading.
Paid Inclusion
No disclosure heading.
http://www.websearch.com/legal/about_results.aspx
The following disclosure is available via a link at the
bottom of the page:
Fast Meta-Search Results:
Web Search uses patented meta-search technology.
They are designed to identify the intent of a user’s
search. If the search term (i.e. buy roses) is determined
to be commercial in-nature, a blended mix of results
weighted towards Sponsored Sites would be displayed.
In the case of a non-commercial term (i.e. roses and
aphids), the blended mix of results would be weighted
towards Matching Sites with research-type contents.
Each search returns results from a collection of search
sources, including Sponsored Sites and Matching Sites.
Results that best match your search terms are displayed.
Each result may contain a Descriptive Title, Brief
Summary of the contents, the URL (Web address) to
where the results are located hyperlinked so that you can
navigate directly with one-click. Depending on the search
terms you are looking for, the results returned from the
source you use includes:
Sponsored Sites:
Results Sources: Ah-ha, FindWhat, Kanoodle,
Overture and Sprinks. “Sponsored Sites” are listings that
have been purchased by companies that want to have
their sites appear for specific search terms. These listings
are administered, sorted and maintained by third
party providers.
Matching Sites:
Results Sources: AllTheWeb, Yahoo, Alta Vista, Ask
Jeeves and Inktomi. “Matching Sites” includes results
from the whole World Wide Web, with sites listed in
order of relevance according to the individual search
engine proprietary method of ranking results (generally,
listings with the highest relevance appear first). Within
these results, there may also be Sponsored Sites which
have paid for an expedited review for their site or for
clicks to their site. These sites are ranked using the normal
algorithm applied to all results within each section.
Sponsored Sites do not receive a change in rank due
to payment.
These results may contain objectionable material not
endorsed by us.
YAHOO! SEARCH
http://search.yahoo.com
Paid Placement
“Sponsor Results”
http://help.yahoo.com/help/us/ysearch/basics/basics-
03.html
Sponsor Results are sites that pay for placement in search
results on terms that are relevant to their business. These
listings are provided by Overture Services, a wholly
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 72
owned subsidiary of Yahoo!, and appear on Yahoo!
Search results pages and other sections of Yahoo!
You’ll see Sponsor Results when they’re relevant to the
specific search terms you used. For example, if you
search for “digital cameras,” you’ll see Sponsor Results
for web sites that provide information about or sell digital
cameras. The Yahoo! Search results pages separate
Sponsor Results from other results so you can tell them
apart. For more information please see Sponsor Results
or, if you are interested in participating in this program,
please see Overture Advertising.
Paid Inclusion
“Web Results”
http://help.yahoo.com/help/us/ysearch/basics/basics-
03.html
Web Results are the most relevant web pages found by
Yahoo! Search in response to your search terms. Web
Results are generated from the billions of web pages discovered,
crawled, and indexed by Yahoo! Search. More
than 99% of web pages in the Yahoo! Search index are
included for free through the web crawl process. Web
Results may also include links to sites that participate in
the Content Acquisition Program (CAP). CAP enables
content providers to submit web content directly to
Yahoo! for review and inclusion in the Yahoo! Search
index; content providers that participate in CAP through
the Site MatchTM program pay for these services.
Participation in CAP does not guarantee placement or
ranking in search results.
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 73
A handful of heavyweights utterly dominate the search
engine market: Namely, Google, Yahoo, MSN, AOL
and Ask Jeeves. Until Yahoo dropped Google in March
to launch its own search engine, the latter was “powering”
roughly 75 percent of all web searches. Even
after the switch, Google still accounts for roughly 50
percent of all Internet searches through its own site and
others using its results.
Yahoo and the sites it now supplies with results are not
far behind. Microsoft, which currently relies on Yahoo for
search results, is expected to launch its own search
engine later in the year, initiating what many expect to
be a three-way clash of the titans. As noted in the
overview, major search engines began supplying both
paid placement and paid inclusion listings to other
search engines in the late 90s. And as the chart below
illustrates, several major players “power” many others—
and many more not shown here.
Most of the search engines below use software to “crawl”
the Web and return (non-paid placement) results based
on algorithmic relevancy to the search query. These
results, of course, often contain paid inclusion listings.
The meta-search engines combine results from several
search engines at once. Overture is a largely commercial
site that features mostly paid-placement listings, although
it does also offer some crawler-based results featuring
paid inclusion listings.
Snapshots of the search engine industry tend to enjoy a
short shelf life, and some the relationships below, which
date from mid-May, may no longer apply. In the interests
of full disclosure, the chart below was based on one
created by SearchEngineWatch.com.6 The sites are listed
in order of rank according to Nielsen December 2003
ratings. Cross-site ownership is noted where applicable.
APPENDIX E: SEARCH ENGINE
INTERRELATIONSHIPS
6 Sullivan, D "Search Engine Results Chart" SearchEnginewatch.com 2004
Available online at: http://searchenginewatch.com/webmasters/article.php/2167981
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 74
SEARCH ENGINE OWNERSHIP
SEARCH ENGINE TYPE OF SEARCH SUPPLIER OF SUPPLIER OF PAID
(OWNER) ENGINE (OWNER) RESULTS (OWNER)
GOOGLE CRAWLER GOOGLE GOOGLE
MSN SEARCH CRAWLER YAHOO OVERTURE (YAHOO)
YAHOO SEARCH CRAWLER YAHOO OVERTURE (YAHOO)
AOL SEARCH CRAWLER GOOGLE GOOGLE
ASK JEEVES CRAWLER TEOMA (ASK JEEVES) GOOGLE
OVERTURE (YAHOO) PAID OVERTURE (YAHOO) OVERTURE (YAHOO)
WEB SEARCH META VARIOUS VARIOUS
LYCOS NETWORK SEARCH CRAWLER YAHOO & LOOKSMART GOOGLE
NETSCAPE SEARCH (AOL) CRAWLER GOOGLE GOOGLE
MY WAY SEARCH (ASK JEEVES) CRAWLER VARIOUS GOOGLE
INFOSPACE WEB SEARCH META VARIOUS VARIOUS
ALTA VISTA (YAHOO) CRAWLER ALTA VISTA (YAHOO) OVERTURE (YAHOO)
1ST BLAZE UNKNOWN UNKNOWN UNKNOWN
MY SEARCH (ASK JEEVES) CRAWLER VARIOUS GOOGLE
CNET’S SEARCH.COM META VARIOUS VARIOUS
FIGURE 21
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 75
We believe Web sites that provide search and navigation
services will promote Web credibility, improve trust
among users and increase usability if they adopt
WebWatch’s guidelines for all Web sites and the following
industry-specific guidelines, which were previously
published in the 2003 WebWatch search engines report
“False Oracles”:
1. Search engine sites should provide consumers with a
comprehensive list of major advertisers and content sponsors
with whom they do business, particularly those relationships
that would influence search rankings or results
page presentation. This list should be prominently displayed
and easy to find, with a current date of last
update. The better sites will display this information on
each of the search results pages or provide an easy-tosee
link (and label) from each results page.
2. Sites should provide consumers with basic explanations
of how ranking and prioritizing technologies work
(i.e., Web indexing, spidering, crawling, human-compiled
directory, etc.) For instance, what criteria are used
to determine keyword relevancy, or, how advertiser-paid
results are fed into the results page.
3. Sites that provide an internal editorial review of keyword-
triggered paid search advertisements and links
should prominently disclose this fact and provide a basic
explanation of how the editorial process works, and how
much it costs the advertiser before acceptance. Sites
should also provide a basic explanation of how they
determine relevancy weighting for paid search results
versus those derived from unbiased algorithms.
4. Sites should tell consumers if search results from a business
partner or third party are exclusive to that site, and
which results from that partner are pure search versus
those that have been paid for, and a last date of update.
For example, sites should explain what is meant by terms
placed next to the search box, such as “Enhanced by
Search Engine X” or “Powered by Search Engine Y.”
5. The better search and navigation sites will use clear
and conspicuous terms to label paid search results,
whether they appear as links or in other formats, like
boxed advertisements. WebWatch recommends the term
“paid advertisement,” which is modeled after the newspaper
and magazine publishing industries. The better
sites will use colored text and/or contained boxes or
APPENDIX F:
GUIDELINES FOR SEARCH ENGINES
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 76
standard Web page areas in which to place paid search
advertisements or links, making them easier for
consumers to distinguish from pure results.
6. The better search and navigation sites will provide
clear options for search customization at the earliest possible
step of the search. Site search architecture should
focus on consumer requirements, as opposed to focusing
on business agreements.
7. The better sites will include a disclaimer or tutorial
page for consumers explaining “first doesn’t necessarily
mean best,” in results returns.
8. Sites should provide an explanation or basic definitions
of frequently used search engine marketing terms
such as “cost-per-click,” “paid search,” “paid placement,”
“pay-for-placement,” “pay-for-performance,”
“pay-per-click,” “paid inclusion” and “paid submission.”
9. Sites that offer paid search marketing programs for
advertisers should avoid making claims such as “the
best,” “most relevant” results or “most matches.”
10. In the special case of meta-search engines, in
which a number of search service providers feed their
paid results to the search engine property: Clear and
conspicuous disclosure should be made to indicate to
consumers that many such results are the equivalent of
paid advertisements.
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 77
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online at:
http://www.commercialalert.org/index.php/article_id/index.php/category_id/1/subcategory_id/24/article_id/33
“Complaint Requesting Investigation of Various Internet Search Engine Companies for Paid Placement and Paid
Inclusion Programs.” Federal Trade Commission (2002) Available online at:
http://www.ftc.gov/os/closings/staff/commercialalertattatch.htm
“Dot Com Disclosures: Information About Online Advertising.” Federal Trade Commission (2000) Available online at:
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/buspubs/dotcom/
“IAB/PwC Release Final Full-Year 2003 Internet Ad Revenue Figures.” Interactive Advertising Bureau (April 21, 2004)
available online at:
http://www.iab.net/news/pr_2004_4_21.asp
Kerner, S. (2003) “Outlook: Paid Inclusion Needs to Change its Ways.” Internetnews.com (December 26, 2003)
available online at:
http://www.internetnews.com/ec-news/article.php/3293111
Marable, L. (2003) “FALSE ORACLES: Consumer Reaction to Learning the Truth About How Search Engines Work.
Results of an Ethnographic Study.” Consumer WebWatch Available online at:
http://www.consumerwebwatch.org/news/searchengines/index.html
Morrissey, B. (2004) “Ask Jeeves Ends Paid Inclusion.” DM News (March 04, 2004) Available online at:
http://www.dmnews.com/cgi-bin/artprevbot.cgi?article_id=26718
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CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 78
Morrissey, B. (2004) “IAB: Search Drove 2003 Internet Ad Spending Surge.” DM News (April 22, 2004) available
online at:
http://www.dmnews.com/cgi-bin/artprevbot.cgi?article_id=27231
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http://www.webadvantage.net/news.cfm?news_category_id=1&&news_item_id=140&&a=2
“Response to Commercial Alert Complaint Requesting Investigation of Various Internet Search Engine Companies for
Paid Placement and Paid Inclusion Programs.” Federal Trade Commission (2002) Available online at:
http://www.ftc.gov/os/closings/staff/commercialalertletter.htm
Sullivan, D (2002) “FTC Recommends Disclosure To Search Engines” SearchEnginewatch.com. Available online at:
http://searchenginewatch.com/sereport/article.php/2164891
Sullivan, D (2003) “Search Engine Disclosure Ratings: May 2003” SearchEnginewatch.com. Available online at:
http://searchenginewatch.com/sereport/article.php/2214891
Sullivan, D. (2003) “Report Shows Confusion Over Paid Listings.” Search Engine Watch.com (June 3, 2003)
Available online at:
http://searchenginewatch.com/sereport/article.php/2216101
Sullivan, D (2004) “Major Search Engines and Directories” SearchEnginewatch.com. Available online at:
http://searchenginewatch.com/links/article.php/2156221
Sullivan, D. (2004) “Nielsen NetRatings Search Engine Ratings.” Search Engine Watch.com (February 23, 2004)
Available online at:
http://searchenginewatch.com/reports/article.php/2156451
Sullivan, D (2004) “Search Engine Results Chart” SearchEnginewatch.com. Available online a:
http://searchenginewatch.com/webmasters/article.php/2167981
Thurow, S. “Understand Search Results Pages.” ClickZ Experts (December 22, 2003) Available online at:
http://www.clickz.com/experts/search/results/article.php/3291021
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 79
i Princeton Survey Research Associates (2002) “A Matter of Trust: What Users Want From Web Sites. Results of a
National Survey of Internet Users.” Consumer WebWatch Available online at:
http://www.consumerWebwatch.org/news/1_abstract.htm
ii Marable, L. (2003) “FALSE ORACLES: Consumer Reaction to Learning the Truth About How Search Engines Work.
Results of an Ethnographic Study.” Consumer WebWatch Available online at:
http://www.consumerwebwatch.org/news/searchengines/index.html
iii “Commercial Alert Files Complaint Against Search Engines for Deceptive Ads.” Commercial Alert (2001) Available
online at:
http://www.commercialalert.org/index.php/article_id/index.php/category_id/1/subcategory_id/24/article_id/33
iv “Complaint Requesting Investigation of Various Internet Search Engine Companies for Paid Placement and Paid
Inclusion Programs.” Federal Trade Commission (2002) Available online at:
http://www.ftc.gov/os/closings/staff/commercialalertattatch.htm
v “IAB/PwC Release Final Full-Year 2003 Internet Ad Revenue Figures” Interactive Advertising Bureau (April 21, 2004)
available online at:
http://www.iab.net/news/pr_2004_4_21.asp
vi Morrissey, B. (2003) “Search Powers Online Ad Revival.” ClickZ Stats (July 30, 2003) Available online at:
http://www.clickz.com/stats/markets/advertising/article.php/5941_2242141
ENDNOTES
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 80
vii Kerner, S. (2003) “Outlook: Paid Inclusion Needs to Change its Ways.” Internetnews.com (December 26, 2003)
available online at:
http://www.internetnews.com/ec-news/article.php/3293111
viii Princeton Survey Research Associates (2002) “A Matter of Trust: What Users Want From Web Sites. Results of a
National Survey of Internet Users.” Consumer WebWatch Available online at:
http://www.consumerWebwatch.org/news/1_abstract.htm
ix “Commercial Alert Files Complaint Against Search Engines for Deceptive Ads." Commercial Alert (2001) Available
online at:
http://www.commercialalert.org/index.php/article_id/index.php/category_id/1/subcategory_id/24/article_id/33
x “Response to Commercial Alert Complaint Requesting Investigation of Various Internet Search Engine Companies for
Paid Placement and Paid Inclusion Programs.” Federal Trade Commission (2002) Available online at:
http://www.ftc.gov/os/closings/staff/commercialalertletter.htm
xi “Complaint Requesting Investigation of Various Internet Search Engine Companies for Paid Placement and Paid
Inclusion Programs.” Federal Trade Commission (2002) Available online at:
http://www.ftc.gov/os/closings/staff/commercialalertattatch.htm
xii “Complaint Requesting Investigation of Various Internet Search Engine Companies for Paid Placement and Paid
Inclusion Programs.” Footnote #3. Federal Trade Commission (2002) Available online at:
http://www.ftc.gov/os/closings/staff/commercialalertattatch.htm#N_3
xiii Marable, L. (2003) “FALSE ORACLES: Consumer Reaction to Learning the Truth About How Search Engines Work.
Results of an Ethnographic Study.” Consumer WebWatch Available online at:
http://www.consumerwebwatch.org/news/searchengines/index.html
xiv “Results from WebAdvantage.net’s ‘Business Users Search Engine Survey.’” (2003) WebAdvantage.net (December
13, 2003) Available online at:
http://www.webadvantage.net/news.cfm?news_category_id=1&&news_item_id=140&&a=2
xv “Response to Commercial Alert Complaint Requesting Investigation of Various Internet Search Engine Companies for
Paid Placement and Paid Inclusion Programs.” Federal Trade Commission (2002) Available online at:
http://www.ftc.gov/os/closings/staff/commercialalertletter.htm
xvi Morrissey, B. (2004) “Ask Jeeves Ends Paid Inclusion.” DM News (March 04, 2004) Available online at:
http://www.dmnews.com/cgi-bin/artprevbot.cgi?article_id=26718
xvii “Response to Commercial Alert Complaint Requesting Investigation of Various Internet Search Engine Companies for
Paid Placement and Paid Inclusion Programs.” Federal Trade Commission (2002) Available online at:
http://www.ftc.gov/os/closings/staff/commercialalertletter.htm
CONSUMER REPORTS WEBWATCH 81
xviii Sullivan, D. (2003) “Report Shows Confusion Over Paid Listings.” Search Engine Watch.com (June 3, 2003)
Available online at:
http://searchenginewatch.com/sereport/article.php/2216101
xix “Response to Commercial Alert Complaint Requesting Investigation of Various Internet Search Engine Companies for
Paid Placement and Paid Inclusion Programs.” Federal Trade Commission (2002) Available online at:
http://www.ftc.gov/os/closings/staff/commercialalertletter.htm
xx Morrissey, B. (2004) “Ask Jeeves Ends Paid Inclusion.” DM News(March 04, 2004) Available online at:
http://www.dmnews.com/cgi-bin/artprevbot.cgi?article_id=26718
xxi Kerner, S. (2003) “Outlook: Paid Inclusion Needs to Change its Ways.” Internetnews.com (December 26, 2003)
available online at:
http://www.internetnews.com/ec-news/article.php/3293111
xxii “Dot Com Disclosures: Information About Online Advertising.” Federal Trade Commission (2000) Available online at:
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/buspubs/dotcom/