WebFetch.com, a search engine which uses metasearch technology to bring together the best search results from several search engines (including Google, Yahoo! and MSN) has become a partner in the ipoints.co.uk online loyalty programme which means that internet users can, for the first time, earn personal rewards for searching online.  Says Sarah Shawe, consumer, mother of two and active internet user, “I use the internet all the time for both surfing for information and also for buying.  If I can now start earning points for doing this, and using a search engine that brings me the best of all the main search engines, then that’s fantastic!”

Visitors to WebFetch.com will be able to sign up to ipoints.co.uk, the biggest online coalition loyalty programme in the UK, and earn two ipoints for their first ten searches.  Subsequently they will earn two ipoints for the 20 subsequent searches.  Thereafter, they will earn two ipoints for every 30 searches up to a maximum of 120 searches each month. 

Given that an average user performs 43 searches per month and that a good proportion of users perform over 100 (derived from Comscore data, April 2006), it is clear that this programme offers users real benefit.

Additionally, WebFetch users will have the opportunity to collect ipoints from other ipoints.co.uk partners such as ChoicesUK.com, making it easy to collect significant numbers of ipoints quickly.  These ipoints can then be exchanged for a wide variety of free gifts from magazine subscriptions and DVDs to flying lessons, free flights, holidays, TVs, designer jewellery and cameras.  There will also be a link from the ipoints.co.uk website inviting ipoints members to try out WebFetch.com.

Dominic Trigg, VP Search at InfoSpace Europe which owns WebFetch.com, comments, “We already have something unique to offer consumers as we provide them with the best search experience on the web.  By tying up with ipoints, the best online loyalty scheme in the business, we are now offering internet users even greater value and hope that this will encourage them to make WebFetch.com their default search engine.”

In order to maintain motivation, the WebFetch home page will also feature a clever ipoints progress bar which will show people how many ipoints they have already earned that month for searching if they are an ipoints member, or how many ipoints they would have earned had they joined up.  People who join the scheme will be able to earn rewards retrospectively for the searches they made earlier in the month.

Geraldine Tosh, Managing Director at ipoints adds, “By linking with ipoints, InfoSpace is giving consumers a great opportunity to try out WebFetch and find out for themselves how effective this search engine is at coming up with the best results.  With ipoints, they then also have a great ongoing reason to make WebFetch their main search engine.”

ENDS

Contacts:

Geraldine Tosh at ipoints.co.uk: t: 020 7819 2820, e: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Susan Perolls at Loudmouth PR: t: 020 7274 9790, e: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it