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FTC says search engines must make paid results clearer
Saturday, June 29, 2002
Internet search engines that take money from Web sites in exchange for prominent placement should make that practice clearer to Web users, federal regulators said yesterday.
Many search engine Web sites, including AltaVista, LookSmart and AOL Search, give preferred placement to paid advertisers. The Federal Trade Commission said that prime space can confuse Web users who are looking for the best response to their search, rather than ads for sites that paid up front.
The commission's decision came in response to a complaint from consumer advocacy group Commercial Alert, which is backed by activist Ralph Nader.
While the FTC said it doesn't plan to file suit against the search engines, it will send a letter to each calling for "clearer disclosure of the use of paid inclusion, including more conspicuous descriptions of paid inclusion itself."
The FTC said it will send the letter to AltaVista, AOL Time Warner, Direct Hit Technologies, iWon, LookSmart, Microsoft and Terra Lycos.
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