MSN says no more looksmart

I got this e-mail from Looksmart regarding MSN search:

Dear valued customer,
This letter is to inform you that there will be changes to your LookListings traffic in 2004, as a result of recent developments within our search distribution partner network. It is important to understand that these changes will not affect your LookSmart traffic in Q4 2003. It is also important to note that these changes will not affect your keyword-targeted Sponsored Listings traffic.

Beginning in January 2004, MSN will be removing the Web Directory Sites layer from its search results, and will no longer have a direct partnership agreement with LookSmart. Your LookListings may still appear on MSN through our distribution partnership with Inktomi, but your paid inclusion traffic will be reduced at that time. Your LookListings will also continue to provide traffic from more than 85 other LookSmart partners such as Lycos, About.com, Road Runner, InfoSpace and CNET. We are negotiating with other portals and ISPs for additional distribution of LookListings, and will let you know as new properties are added to our network.

While LookSmart's paid inclusion traffic will decrease in Q1 2004, we are working to grow our presence in the pay-for-placement market.

We recently launched LookSmart Sponsored Listings, our first bid-for-placement keyword product. Sponsored Listings is fully integrated with LookListings, so you can use your existing login and password, get started with just a few simple clicks, and monitor the performance of all your paid inclusion and pay-for-placement listings together in the LookSmart Advertiser Center. Click here to learn more about Sponsored Listings or to add them to your campaign.

On behalf of LookSmart staff and management, I would like to thank you in advance for your continued support.

Regards,
Jason Kellerman,
Chief Executive Officer,
LookSmart

lol I came here to post it too, I think a battle for SE suppremacy may be closer than we think, Ok guys Anyone have any kick *** lierature on the up and coming MSN search engine?

Hey SEO Guy,

Yeah I kinda figured it has been coming for a while, but I really have not seen any literature as to what they are going to replace the directory results with (if anything). It seems like perhaps for a while they will just use the inktomi results they currently show after the directory results. I have to say though I think that this is the kiss of death for Looksmart.

Hell yeah it is, a HUGE! portion of their revenue is from MSN, but also one wonders why MSN would make such a move because a HUGE portion of MSN search revenue came from looksmart.

It is my feeling that MSN smartened up and realized 100% of ppc is better than a portion from looksmart, but with the inevitability of msn search's own bot and search technology and the purchase of Overture by Yahoo I really think if any PPC exists for MSN after the Q2 of 2004 it will be MSN PPC only

Any other thoughts?

Maybe (just my guess) MSN will now show more than the top three results from Overture?

MSN probably finally realized that their search results were dog**** with five pages of irrelevant directory listings at the top.

Good call Egol