Google, Yahoo test ‘pay-per-call’ online advertising
Internet giants Google Inc. and Yahoo Inc. are testing a new form of online advertising that encourages people to pick up the phone rather than click on a link, lending credibility to the “pay-per-call” ad model.
Most search advertising currently uses an approach called pay-per-click. Google and other sites auction the right for a company’s ad to appear next to search results when somebody enters keywords, such as “flowers” or “digital cameras.” Advertisers pay the search engine each time someone clicks on the ad link.
With pay-per-call, users are instead directed to call the advertiser, who is billed for each phone referral.
At some sites, including Time Warner Inc.’s America Online Inc., the customer must pick up a phone and dial the number.
Google is testing a variant in which users click on a phone icon and type their number into a box. Google then dials the user, who hears ringing until the merchant answers. Google says the service is free for callers even on long-distance calls, and it promises not to divulge the caller’s number to anyone.
Calling the test “limited,” Google spokesman Mike Mayzel declined to offer more details.
Service offers online music backup
The founder of the original MP3.com Web site for downloading music has launched a service that lets computer users store their music files on the Internet and retrieve from pretty much anywhere.
Users can synch up their files and playlists to multiple computers, personal digital assistants and, eventually, mobile phones and other devices, said Michael Robertson, chief executive of San Diego-based MP3tunes. It’s also a way for music lovers to safeguard their music, in case their computers crash.
Oboe costs $39.95 a year and includes unlimited storage and bandwidth. A free version lets users to upload content and stream it to other computers but does not allow for downloading and offline play.
The venture is Robertson’s second attempt at bringing to market a digital “music locker” service. In 1999, he bought hundreds of thousands of CDs and made them accessible through MP3.com to people who already owned that CD.
But recording companies sued, and MP3.com ultimately went to the parent of Universal Music. (More recently, CNET Networks Inc. acquired the domain name.)
Microsoft launches security service test
Microsoft Corp. is offering the public a free test version of its new service for protecting consumers from viruses and other Internet threats.
The company plans to eventually charge for Windows OneCare Live, though it has yet to announce subscription fees.
In the test version, OneCare will update itself automatically on Internet-linked computers to deal with the most recent threats, while performing other PC tuneups to keep computers running smoothly.