Search experts discussed search engine recommendations and the value of pay-per-click ads at a panel discussion today on "Smart Choices in Search Advertising."

Shopping search engine TheFind.com has partnered with vertical content network Glam Media. The venture will enable Glam.com and other sites within the network to have access to TheFind's shopping search when searching for boutiques, item type or a particular label.

The story is classic: A factory replaces the human worker with a machine to mass produce and streamline its process. Well, this isn't quite the same story, but the idea is the same — leveraging technology to make your business more efficient. In today's challenging economy, marketing budgets are being slashed and agencies are being tasked with squeezing every last drop from their precious budget, and many are developing tools to do the same work in less time, using fewer resources.

This week, Verizon delivered some good news: Not only did the firm add 1.5 million new wireless subscribers in the third quarter, net income was up 31%. While landline and DSL customers decreased, the launch of FIOS, the company's fast Web, phone and television bundle, is meeting its targets. In short, if there is one thing that consumers won't sacrifice during a downturn, it is fast home and mobile digital communication. Fall fashion, the home renovation or even the new flat screen can wait. Without Internet access, we are nothing.

As technology advances and the demands of customers frag­ment, the task of empowering resellers and distributors with effective, relevant marketing tools becomes daunting.

Pay-per-click traffic quality management and click fraud prevention service provider ClickForensics today released its third quarter industry average click fraud figures.

Yahoo has released its earnings report for the third quarter ended September 30. Revenues were $1.786 billion for the third quarter of 2008, a 1% increase compared to $1.768 billion for the same period of 2007. The search engine also announced its expectation to reduce its workforce by at least 10% during the fourth quarter.

Visual search engine Searchme has launched its music search-and-share feature that allows users to listen to unlimited streaming audio tracks through embeddable widgets from social music service Imeem. Users also can share search results with others through social networks.

The 10-year budget battle between display and search marketing appears to have come to a close, giving way to an integrated approach to online advertising. Multiple studies pointing to an increase in lift and ROI can be credited for broker­ing the truce.

It's no secret that the words "search" and "Google" have become synonymous in many peoples' minds. Frankly, I find this is a bit disturbing. Sure, Google has the biggest audience, and yes, its interface is arguably the most streamlined and intuitive. But just because Google maintains a significantly larger market share and might be a bit easier for users than the other engines does not mean it's the best at everything — which is why I'm interested in what everyone else is doing better than Google.