+++Google to Power AOL Search+++

Big, big news for Google and AOL today! It was announced that Google would soon be powering the search results at AOL and their other Web properties such as Netscape and CompuServe. This is not only great news for Google, but also for AOL searchers, as they will finally be able to easily find what they're looking for on their first try!

Google AdWords ads will also be making an appearance at AOL, which explains why they've cracked down on their editorial guidelines in recent weeks. For those that aren't in the program, many ads that were running fine for weeks were suddenly disapproved. My own ad, which had been getting tons of clicks for over a month, was recently disapproved for using ALL CAPS and improper punctuation (an exclamation point!). This didn't seem to make any sense given the AdWords box-like format; however, it makes perfect sense in the AOL-sponsored listing format. It appears that AOL is already replacing Overture ads with Google ads in the "Sponsored" section at AOL as of this writing.

I guess my friend Andrew Goodman was right on the money in his recent Traffick article, "Google Eschews Editorial Intervention... Or Do They?" <http://www.traffick.com/article.asp?aID=70>. In the article, Andrew said, "The painstaking detail of all these new editorial rules, and the suddenness and rigor of their enforcement, suggests to me that Google is in hot and heavy negotiations with a major portal like AOL to syndicate AdWords results to the big guys." Way to go, Andrew!

Can you look into your crystal ball and tell us how long LookSmart has to live? [Editor's note: some psychic visions were conjured. Stay tuned to this space. :) ]

You can review Google's Editorial Guidelines here:
<https://adwords.google.com/select/guidelines.html>

+++Overture Ads to Continue on Yahoo+++

Although Overture lost the AOL account, they just signed up for a three-year extension to supply ads to Yahoo! so don't count them out of the game by any means. See this article from C|Net News for more info: <http://news.com.com/2100-1023-892770.html>.

+++Looks Like Hoodlums+++

Once again, I hesitate to give LookSmart any more attention, but as more is revealed about their new "business model," they look scummier and scummier in my eyes. Perhaps they're just working out the kinks, but here are some things they are allegedly doing (either purposely or by mistake) that look very, very unethical to me:

* Changing their Terms of Service at their whim.

* "Upgrading" sites that paid a one-time fee and forcing them into their convoluted pay-per-click model.

* Refusing to issue refunds to those who don't wish to be "upgraded" even if they paid their "one-time fee" just hours before the new business model took place. (This one happened to me.)

* Registering clicks to sites, yet those clicks don't show up in server logs.

* Temporarily de-listing sites that refuse to pay beyond the small amount of "free" clicks LookSmart has so <cough> generously provided.

* Giving a lower ranking to sites that refuse to pay.

* Attaching affiliate links to URLs in their directory, so they can get paid twice.

* Showing Espotting pay-per-click listings mixed in with the regular LookSmart UK results for keywords that Espotters did not purchase (yetare unwittingly paying for).

* Apparently redirecting some Inktomi results through LookSmart's pay-per-click program by attaching the LookSmart redirect link where it really doesn't belong, effectively charging per click where there should be no charge.

Who knows what the upcoming weeks will reveal? Perhaps everyone who has noticed these things has simply lost their minds. At any rate, you won't catch me EVER doing business with LookSmart again. Hopefully I'm through writing about them also, but somehow I doubt it.

~~~Advisor Wrap-Up~~~

Aside from the fact that I couldn't fall asleep until 4 AM each night, last week's trip to London was great fun for me! The conference went really well, and I met a whole bunch of wonderful people. If all English people are as friendly as those I hung around with, then you Brits have quite the country! I look forward to heading back out there soon. Next time, I'll definitely take a few extra days to do some sightseeing. I still wanna see those guards with the big, furry hats and red coats at that castle thingee... (spoken like a true American, eh?).