Clicking in Brazil

Commercial search kingpin Overture Services is turning up the heat in Latin America.

On Tuesday, the Yahoo subsidiary said it bought TeRespondo, the largest Brazilian paid search company. Financial details were not disclosed, but Overture said the deal will close soon. The acquisition will give Overture more solid footing in Brazil, where it launched only late last year. And with the buyout, Overture reunites with one of its biggest clients in the United States, but whose affections may soon fade: Microsoft. TeRespondo, founded in 2001, provides sponsored search ads to several Web portals in Brazil, including MSN.