• ClickZ, Friday, November 25, 2005 10:30 AM

Google is now testing a new form of pay-per-call on its search results pages. When searchers see a phone icon next to a company's sponsored listing, they can enter their phone number and have Google connect them to the company for free. The system dials the search user first and then the merchant. This means that Google, in addition to having your entire search history on file, now has your phone number, too. In its FAQ, Google attempts to address privacy concerns by saying it stores phone call information for less than four months, and blocks users' numbers from advertisers. Google confirmed the tests but declined to comment about its plans for the service. Pay-per-call is currently supplied by a string of small technology firms. Google is the first major company to enter the burgeoning sector of local search, which the Kelsey Group pegs at up to $4 billion by 2009.

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