shorebreak - 1:11 am on Jun 24, 2004 (gmt 0)

JeevesGuy, I'm not sure what the basis is for the 7-8% number; not saying it's not true, just that I don't know how it's arrived at. The implication is that 7-8% of all searches done in the U.S. are done on ASKJ/ISH properties, and I think the reality is that even if 65% of your inventory were going to AdWords (and thus not something advertisers would see), the remaining 35% should add up to .35 x 7-8% = 2.25-2.8% of most sites' search-driven traffic.

Most people on the board (and I'm not an advertiser so can't voice on opinion on this) are saying their anecdotal data points to <1% for that figure.

As you say, I *do* want more than just Google & Overture as an option for my advertisers, but whether it's worth the time or not is somewhat a function of whether non-Google ASKJ/ISH is more like <1% or more like 2-3% as you say. I just think it would behoove ASKJ to render fully transparent their search statistics.

I am rooting for AKSJ/ISH, though, just as I am rooting for FWHT; a two-party system does not an open market make.