03/10/2004 - 550Access, a nationwide
internet services provider, announced today the
release of its latest Toolbar version 3.0, now
available at http://toolbar.550access.com.
The highlight feature of this version is the PRECISION
SEARCH that expands the scope of online ad-blocking
to search engines and exposes the vulnerability
in search engines business model.
PRECISION SEARCH blocks sponsored
ads in search engine results and suppresses online
banner ads. Blocking of such ads presents a cleaner,
uncluttered look of web pages and improves surfing
speeds.
A major portion of Search Engine
revenues comes from paid placement ads. Paid placement
ads represent banners and other ads (often identified
as Sponsored Links) that exist on a search engine
page. These include vertical sidebar ads outside
the editorial space or highlighted text ads placed
on top within the editorial space.
Such prominent placements help
advertisers attract more traffic to their website
but are often a source of confusion for users
since first of all they clutter up the screen
and secondly these sponsored links are often not
the most relevant links for a user’s query.
By blocking paid placement ads,
PRECISION SEARCH gives users more relevant results
for their search query within a cleaner screen
space. Most importantly, removal of search ads
increases the search results relevancy and protects
users against inefficiencies resulting from search
engines commercialism. This, in turn, compels
search engines to evolve more user-friendly strategies
that also uphold credibility of their search services.
According to Vivek Dave, President
of 550Access, “Consumers should have control
on what they choose to see and what they do not
because it is the consumer who owns the desktop.”
Users of the Toolbar 3.0 have
the option to deactivate PRECISION SEARCH at any
time. Besides PRECISION SEARCH, 550 Access Toolbar
3.0 continues to offer the functionality of Toolbar
2.0, a prior version, which got highest ratings
on Download.com.
Toolbar 3.0 also includes tools
for popup blocking, autofill, instant search and
online privacy, and is available for free at http://toolbar.550access.com.
About the Company
550Access is a leader in budget ISP market and
offers lowest priced regular and high speed dialup
services for $5.50 and $8.95 respectively, to
customers nationwide. 550Access also offers a
complete dialup solution to corporate customers
for $5.25 per month per account
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Contact:
Vivek Dave
President
550Access.com
E-mail: president(@)550access.com
