AOL, Google expand search agreement

NEW YORK: America Online, the world's largest Internet service provider, and Web search company Google Inc. on said that they extended an agreement to make it easier for AOL customers to find what they need on the Internet.

AOL, which is owned by AOL Time Warner Inc., said the expanded search services includes localized search responses, which makes it easier to find businesses, services or stores near them based on the zip code they have on file with Dulles, Virginia-based AOL.

Mountain View, California-based Google also will provide AOL and users of other services such as CompuServe with its sponsored links, which pull from Google's base of more than 150,000 advertisers.

Web search is one of the hot areas for Internet media. Last week Google said it had bought Kaltix Corp., a start-up that builds the personalized and context-sensitive search tools that the industry sees as part of its next wave of product offerings.

© Reuters