Point taken, yes. And while MSN does nothing for me whatsoever, I have no problem as the search engine user being compensated for my time; just so long as the results are accurate and meeting my needs.

You would think that “build the best search engine and they will come” as a strategy (and a mantra) would do the trick in getting users to your search engine. No more, at least not for MSN, which is now offering cash prizes to users who use their search engine (Yahoo! is also considering getting into the game, as it were).

Can a sweepstakes approach to search work? It is true that iWon.com employed this concept with its search engine when it launched in 1999. However, MSN is not a gambling site and the folks there seem to be aware of some possible PR issues: by throwing into the mix the prospect of directing one’s winnings to a charity they may be preempting criticism that the company is venturing into the territory of promotional bribery. [Read the rest]

[tags]pr,paid search,online marketing[/tags]