Microsoft announced yesterday that it will offer consumers cash back incentives for using their search engine, Live search. The way the program is designed, consumers will be rewarded for searching and buying products using Microsoft’s SE by receiving a percentage rebate after the transaction is completed.  That rebate equates to a cost per action fee Microsoft charges its merchants, which include online stores like eBay, Barnes & Noble and Overstock.com. 

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On Thursday, YouTube released YouTube Insight, a video analytics tool created to help posters understand where their viewers are located and how they found their videos. Like data analytics programs, the data collected through Insight is expected to help online marketers and advertisers better target their videos to the correct regions and demographics. 

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Analysts are assessing Google’s paid click numbers for the last couple of months and are concerned that the search engine giant is falling short of its projected goals since the company adjusted how it generates clicks.  The Associated Press article “Google Paid Clicks Data Generate Debate” out today, news of Google’s faltering stock revenues and click rates has analysts wondering if this is a permanent problem or a temporary melt-down. 

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