U.S. survey shows that only 18% users can distinguish between search results and advertising

U.S. local time on January 23rd (Beijing time January 24th) news, the United States Pugh (Pew) "the latest report on the Internet and American life project shows that in each of the six users, only an understanding of the difference between normal search results and advertising.

The report said Pugh, search activities in Internet users, they also get search results in a large number of paid advertising, advertising for the specific number of search keywords users type vary; a site to pay a higher probability, the search results appear in the greater. Google calls these paid ads "sponsored links"; YAHOO calls it "sponsorship results"; Microsoft MSN is called "sponsored sites"". These paid ads usually appear on the right or top of the normal search results; in some cases, the results of these paid ads will be displayed in different colors.

Pugh reported that in all search users, only 38% of the search results and pay the difference between advertising; 47% can not recognize what the results are paid advertising; only the ability to identify paid advertising. 45% search users said that if you can not distinguish between the normal search results and paid advertising differences, they will stop using search tools, but 92% of users believe that they have a strong search ability.

Pugh, the new report author Deborah fallows (Deborah Fallows) said that in the crowd can not distinguish web search results and the difference between normal advertising, television programs and television ads on their difference is very clear, this fully shows that the Internet is still in the preliminary stage of development.

Pugh's investigation activities between May 14, 2004 and June 17th. The survey conducted a telephone interview of 2200 adults, including 1399 Internet users. The positive and negative error rate is 3%.