On Wednesday, Microsoft, the US computer giant, revealed its online search MSN adCenter to expand on the market hugely captured by Yahoo and Google online search engines.

The MSN adCenter paid search system prototype was shown by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer at a conference for online advertisers on the company’s Redmond campus.

Under the plan, the advertisers will have the chance to take advantage of the audience information MSN gleans from its users to better target keyword ads. It will help to distinguish between MSN and its main rivals Yahoo and Google.

"The vision is, this will be a platform that allows you to buy everything. Now, we have the ability to manage campaigns across our network. This tool will give a new level of business intelligence," said Eric Hadley, senior director of advertising and marketing for MSN.

MSN so far used paid results from Yahoo, sharing the revenue from the service with the rival firm. The agreement between the two Internet giants runs out in 2006, the time Microsoft has an option to finish all testing of the new service.

 "We can use the same backends that are used to deliver targeted advertising on the Internet to deliver targeted advertising to somebody who is watching television," Steve Ballmer said yesterday.
AdCenter testing will begin in Singapore and France within six months, Microsoft said.