Federal Trade Commission ■ Bureau of Consumer Protection ■ Office of Consumer and Business Education

FTC Consumer Alert

Being Frank about Search Engine Rank

Youíre using your favorite search engine, ready to find the most appropriate sites for your needs. You

type in your search terms, and up comes a list of the most relevant sites, right? Not necessarily, says the

Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the federal governmentís consumer protection agency.

Often, search engines look for your search term within the web pages theyíve collected and indexed. The

results reflect the search engineís determination of how relevant the siteís content is to your inquiry. But some

search engines will rank sites higher in your results if the site pays a fee, regardless of its relevance to your

terms. FTC officials say itís a savvy surfer who knows how search results are sorted and ranked. It can

make a difference in which search engines you choose to use and how you interpret the results.

If you use Internet search engines, the FTC wants you to know that:

ï Some search engines have programs for paid placement and paid inclusion.

- Paid placement means websites or URLs pay search engines for higher rankings or more prominent

placements in search results.

- Paid inclusion means websites or URLs pay to be included in a search engineís pool of results available

for display, but not to be more prominent.

- Sometimes, third-party partners, like other search engines or guide sites, provide listings to search

engines. If a partner has its own payment arrangements with a website, it could affect the results on the

search engine you use.

ï Many sites indicate whether a placement is paid for. If the search engine separates some search results

as ìSponsored Listings,î they may be paid for placement. But keep in mind that results may be grouped

under other labels. Look for terms like ìfeatured listings,î ìrecommended sites,î ìsearch partnerî or

ìproducts and services.î If those sites are ranked higher than others or placed in a more prominent location than others, it could be a tip-off that the search engine uses a paid placement program.

ï You may find an explanation of the type of paid placement or paid inclusion program the search engine

uses. If such a program is in use, the explanations should be easy to find and understand. If theyíre not

and the omission bothers you, let the search engine know.

ï Paid inclusion programs do not guarantee higher rankings for listings and may provide features that are

useful. For example, paid inclusion programs may provide consumers with better choices if the programs

allow search engines to review URLs more quickly or review websites more deeply than they would

otherwise.

ï You have a choice. Before you decide which search engine to use, consider whether the use of payment

programs for placement or inclusion is important to you.

The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive and unfair business practices in the

marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop and avoid them. To file a complaint or to

get free information on consumer issues, visit www.ftc.gov or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-

4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, identity theft and other fraud-related

complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to hundreds of civil and criminal law

enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.

F C EDERAL RADE OMMISSION T FTC OR HE ONSUMER

1-877-FTC-HELP www.ftc.gov

September 2002