Google lets site owners ‘host search’

Google is to allow all website owners to host Google searches on their own sites for the first time, and will share revenue generated from ad clicks with the proprietors.

Previously, visitors to sites that had a partnership with Google would be taken to Google’s own site when they wanted to conduct a search. The only exceptions were the very biggest sites, such as AOL.

In addition to the possibility of generating advertising revenue, site owners who take up Google’s offer will also benefit from having far better control of their branding online, and will be more likely to keep visitors for longer periods.

Google search results and keyword-targeted ads will now appear in a window on participating websites. These search results pages can be further customised with logos specified by the site owner and colour schemes that complement the host site’s design. Website owners will be able to track the number of queries being made, visits to other sites which result from queries and their earnings from ads.