Overture Services, the people who brought Pay-For-Performance keyword buys to search engines almost everywhere, today partnered with computer manufacturer Hewlett-Packard for its own keyboard button
(and some other stuff).
Under the agreement, Overture's search results can be accessed from HP Pavilion desktop PCs by selecting either the keyboard button labeled “Search the Internet” or through
the “Search the Web” box on the default HP homepage.
Users will be taken to a customized HP search page, serving a full set of Overture's search results. In addition, HP Pavilion notebook and
desktop PCs users will be able to access Overture's search results by selecting the search button on their browsers.
Hewlett-Packard will receive a cut of Overture's cost-per-click keyword ads
through the deal.
Overture's listings are generated by 53,000 advertisers who bid for placement on keywords relevant to their business. The company’s 100-person editorial team then screens these
listings before distributing them to the company's affiliate partner network, which includes AOL Time Warner and Yahoo! (Overture’s syndication contracts with the two firms are due to expire in April
and June respectively).
The partnership announcement comes on the heels of Overture filing a patent infringement lawsuit against highly-regarded search engine Google, which in recent months began
distributing its own paid search listings to portals.