''Spend money to earn money'' – the cash back feature available on many credit cards today may not be exactly earning a customer money, but it certainly helps offset a part of the purchase costs. In a similar feature, quite revolutionary on the Internet, Microsoft announced a plan to give advertisement-funded cash rebates to consumers who buy certain products through its Live Search Cashback programmeme.

The announcement was made at advance08, an annual get-together of advertisers hosted on Microsoft's campus in Redmond, Washington, and assumes special significance after the software giant's failed $ 47.5 billion bid to acquire Yahoo recently.

Analysts and investors have been eagerly awaiting details about "Plan C" in its battle for internet advertising with search leader Google, after Microsoft acknowledged that its Plan A of going solo got it to a distant third with 10-per cent market share agfter Yahoo! but also withdrew its Plan B - acquiring Yahoo - because Yahoo executives sought more money.

"I have to say, its kind of fun to be the underdog," Microsoft chairman Bill Gates confessed. The company has put an unusual effort toward building the team that's working on search, he said. "We've done more on this to build a great team then on any effort I can remember," he said.

Users should expect to see new features every six months from Microsoft's search group, he said. "We have a long-term commitment," Gates said. The company is willing to experiment, he said.

Wednesday's launch of Cashback represents the latest new feature. Under this programme, Web shoppers who sign up for an account and buy items found using Microsoft's Live Search Cashback site will receive a percentage of the purchase price deposited into their account.

When the total reaches $5, the shoppers can redeem their "cold, hard cash" via eBay Inc.'s PayPal. Microsoft said the rebates are funded with a portion of the money it collects from advertisers.

As many as 700 merchants have already signed up to advertise as part of the Cashback programmeme. These include prominent names like eBay, Barnes and Noble, Sears, Circuit City, Cookware.com, Crutchfield, HP, Jockey, TigerDirect.com, Home Depot, Zappos.com, Overstock.com and Kmart.

The user experience, as a result of this deal, is expected to be positive; they stand to gain access to over 10 million products from merchants, including 3 of the top 40 retailers in the US. Additionally, they can expect rebates ranging from 2 to 30 per cent on each purchase.

The process is described on its website as follows:

• Search - Search for cashback deals at Live Search cashback. Each time you click a Live Search cashback listing, you'll find great deals on the product you chose. Your results will clearly list the cashback savings you'll receive off the store price, and your final bottom-line price that includes tax and shipping costs. Also look for this icon   when you search for a product on Live Search to find great cashback deals.
• Shop - Compare and sort products by the bottom-line price. Click the best deal to go to the store. Everything you buy during that store visit will be eligible for Live Search cashback. On your first time using Live Search cashback, we will ask you for an email address so we can tell you how to quickly set up your free cashback account.
• Save - Keep saving money each time you use Live Search cashback. Every time you make a qualifying purchase, we'll send you an email to confirm your Live Search cashback savings. When your cashback account reaches a balance of at least $5, you can claim your cold, hard cash.

Gates pointed out how Cashback is different than existing search advertising methods. "In search, when you get those ads, in a sense you don't get anything back in return," he said. That compares to other media like TV or radio, where in exchange for advertisements, viewers and listeners get content.

Cashback "gives you a reason why you should use a particular search," he said.

Microsoft has grand ideas about this concept, believing that this will create a whole new business model, though it also expects that it might take some time for it to shake up the industry. Historically, search ads that have made companies like Google successful are typically sold by the click, itself seen as revolutionary compared with the traditional method of paying for ads by the number of viewers.

"It's exciting. I think years from now you may look back and say, 'Wow, search started to get a fair bit more competitive,' and you can look back to that announcement," Gates said.

Cashback wasn't the only innovative search feature unveiled at the convention. The company also showed off search features in beta release based on the company's recent acquisition of Farecast.

When Internet users search on Live.com for flights, results will include information collected by Farecast that predict when a traveler can get the best deal on a flight. Microsoft has also used that technology to now offer similar information to people looking for hotel deals.

Additionally, video search also featured prominently at the meet. Video search on the Live portal was shown to throw up results along with the options to refine search parameters. Moreover, simply moving the cursor over a video was sufficient to start it playing, without necessitating further downloads or opening up new pages. Gates demonstrated this feature favourably against a comparable Google result.