Yahoo! is to test Google’s AdSense for Search service, which will display Google ads alongside Yahoo’s own search results in the US.
The test is expected to last up to two weeks and will be limited to no more than 3pc of Yahoo! search engines, the company said.
Yahoo!’s board of directors is exploring strategic alternatives to maximise stockholder value, including exploration of potential commercial business arrangements.
The company noted that the testing does not necessarily mean that Yahoo! will join the AdSense for Search programme or that any further commercial relationship with Google will result.
Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal is reporting that Yahoo! and AOL are closing on a deal that would see their internet operations merge. Citing anonymous sources, the newspaper claimed Time Warner, which owns AOL, is negotiating a deal whereby AOL would be absorbed into Yahoo! and Time Warner would then make a cash investment in return for about 20pc of the combined entity.
By Niall Byrne
