X

Study: URL typos earn Google $497 million per year

Google could be making millions from "typosquatting" because its network of display ads--from which it receives a cut of the profits--run on the typo'd sites.

headshots_andrew_nusca.jpg
headshots_andrew_nusca.jpg
Andrew Nusca Special to CNET News
Andrew Nusca is the editor of SmartPlanet and an associate editor at ZDNet. He has written for New York, Men's Vogue, Popular Mechanics, and Money. He is based in New York.
See full bio
Andrew Nusca

Google could be earning some $497 million a year from the registered owners of Web site addresses that mimic typographical errors in existing sites, according to a new study.

Harvard University researchers Tyler Moore and Benjamin Edelman estimate that Google could be making millions from the practice, known as "typosquatting," because its network of display ads--from which it receives a cut of the profits--run on the typo'd sites.

If it's a frequently misspelled site address--for example, zddnet.com instead of yours truly--the tactic could pay off handsomely.

Read more of "URL typos earn Google $497 million per year, study says" at ZDNet's Between the Lines.