Enterprise search software provider Covario has announced the acquisition of Netconcepts, a search engine optimization consultancy. The companies will merge and operate as Covario, Inc. and will be headquartered out of San Diego. The newly merged company will have 100 clients, offering a powerful, integrated system for implementing SEM and SEO campaigns.

Image via CrunchBase Do you have a really hard question about paid search marketing, but can't find the answer? Well, Marin Software along with Search Engine Watch and ClickZ has just launched " Ask the PPC Experts ." )No, I didn't write the press release that went out this morning. But, thanks for asking.( This free online forum allows marketers to get immediate answers to even the toughest paid search questions directly from leading industry experts. But wait! There's more!

If you've wanted to add some social functionality to your website but aren't a hardcore developer, then things just got a bit easier - if you're using Drupal or Joomla. The two content management systems can now incorporate Google Friend Connect to any site with the ease of a handy dandy plugin. If you do so, then visitors to your site can interact by signing in with their Google, Yahoo or Twitter accounts. You can promote Featured Content,

Yahoo! has announced a new partnership with PriceGrabber that will change things up considerably over on Yahoo! Shopping. The partnership primarily involves having the product submit functionality on Yahoo! Shopping powered by PriceGrabber. As a result, Yahoo! is shutting down their Shopping API. This goes into effect March 11, 2010. Anyone who's using the API will now have to gain access to Yahoo! Shopping results by using PriceGrabber's syndication services.

Are you going to Search Engine Strategies )SES( for the first time? Whether you attend SES London 2010 or SES New York 2010 , here are 10 tips for getting the most out of the event: 1. Wear comfortable shoes. I know, I know, this sounds suspiciously like the classic advice, " Wear sunscreen ." But you don't need to wear sunscreen inside the Business Design Centre in Islington or the Hilton New York. But you do need to wear comfortable shoes.

Instant Answers is arguably one of Bing's best features. If you want to know the score of a game or status of a certain flight, simply type it in and get the answers directly in the search results. Various information has slowly been added to Instant Answers over time. The latest update involves adding the NBA Instant Answers to Bing's mobile search site , which can be accessed at m.bing.com. Here's what it looks like: Scroll down and you'll see the regular search results,

The French government is working on a tax plan to charge online advertising revenue generated from actions within their country, Clickz reported Friday . Just how they would determine the numbers will be interesting to see. " A report presented to the French government this week suggests that each time an ad is clicked, online firms should be charged a levy of between one and two percent of the revenue generated,

Landing page optimization )#lpo( can be a powerful way to increase conversion rates and to get more people to complete online forms. What you do after the form-fill can be even more important. If your next step is to follow up over the phone, you are probably pissing away money and costing your company a fortune - unless you dial the phone within five minutes.

If you go to Google.com/news and scroll all the way to the bottom, you'll now see Fast Flip . This is a visual-based news platform that was launched into Labs last September . It's designed to enable users to read the news similar to how they would a print edition - there are pages, that you flip through. Google was keen to point out that Fast Flip remains in Labs. But it is a feature that is quickly growing. Last month, 55 resources were added to Fast Flip .

Local search site CitySquares has made a very cool acquisition . They've purchased an online retail directory, Yokel.com. Yokel is designed to help you find which local stores carry specific products or brands. It was the brainchild of Scott Randall and Don Zereski and launched in 2006 . CitySquares has been one of the fastest growing local search engines. It began in the Northeast and quickly expanded nationwide.

After years of speculation, Apple is finally expected to unveil its new tablet product at the end of the month. There is great anticipation over the new device, with rumors, predictions and punditry littering the blogosphere. Apple fanboys and girls can't get enough. They're turning to the search engines to gobble up any ounce of information about the new gadget.

The AOL/Google search partnership agreement is ending this year and according to AOL CEO Tim Armstrong the company will be looking for the best possible deal, though Google will get "firsts dibs", according to the Wall Street Journal. Initial reports had Armstrong stating the new partnership was open to the highest bidder,

Google has added to their education/assistance information with the launch of an optimization center for Adwords , an area offering tips and strategies for all levels of Adwords' users. The center has gathered information from numerous specialists and categorized it into basic, intermediate and advanced to be accessible to all levels of ppc experience. There are also areas covering each account feature and advertising goals.

The Third Annual Crunchie Awards have been announced by Tech Crunch and Google and Bing are among the recipients. The awards are given to various areas of the technology field. Facebook has won the best overall product award for all three years.

Baidu's chief operating officer Dr. Peng Ye is resigning his post, effective immediately. The departure is related to personal reasons and no replacement has yet been named. "We thank Peng for his contributions to the company over the last two years and wish him all the best in his future endeavors," said Baidu chairman and CEO Robin Li. That's not the only change occurring in Baidu's executive ranks.

In an interview with Bloomberg , Carol Bartz graded her first year as Yahoo!'s CEO. She gave herself a B minus. That's probably a fair grade. Bartz did finally get the search deal with Microsoft done . But the deal hasn't been implemented yet and their search market share has fallen quite a bit . Yahoo! stock has recovered a bit from 2008, when Jerry Yang failed to take advantage of Microsoft's generous offers. But there is still recovery to be made.

Sites like Hulu and the increasing adoption of media players such as the Apple TV are showing consumer desire )and willingness( to experience original content in new ways. This has not been lost on former NBC and Universal co-chair Ben Silverman, who has formed a new studio called Electus. The studio is an effort to connect content creators with advertisers. Think product placement - taken to the next level. This, of course, NEEDS to happen.

If you're rocking the iPhone or Android 2.0.1 or later )can you say, Nexus One ?(, then you're getting access to a new feature on the Google mobile homepage. It's called "Near Me Now" and you can access it via a link underneath the main search box )you know, where you type in the keywords(. Once there, you'll - and I know this is going to blow your mind - find restaurants, businesses and other establishments that are in close proximity to your current location.

If you've visited Facebook in the past two days, you may have noticed your friends posting a color as their status. Black. Pink. Purple. A meme is going around encouraging women to post the color of the bra they're wearing. Supposedly, it's designed to raise breast cancer awareness. But many are thinking it's the color of your underwear. And they have no idea why it's being posted. So now you have dudes posting funny updates about their undies or lack thereof.

During the holidays, a few search-related business dealings were going on. Google wants to buy video compression company On2. Their initial offering was 0.0001 shares of Google Class A common stock for every share of On2 stock. Shareholders were hesitant, so Google has returned to the bargaining table with an additional 15 cents in cash per share. As a result, shares of On2 were up 15 cents today. Meanwhile, on December 22, ReachLocal filed for an IPO .