Google is adding forum topics as deep links for some search results. These can occur for your traditional message boards or even answers sites.

Google says that the deep links will occur for sites that appear to have a large number of discussions on a given topic.

Check out this search for “laptop fan noise” and notice the forum deep links under the Yahoo! Answers result:

Want to drive lots of revenue online? The sports arena might be your ticket.

A new comScore report breaks down visitor profiles for the four largest professional sports websites in the U.S.: Major League Baseball (MLB.com), the National Football League (NFL.com), the National Basketball Association (NBA.com) and the National Hockey League (NHL.com). And by their findings, these sports fans have plenty of money to spend.

Take a look at the chart below. What first stands out is that in the $75,000+ category of the U.S. Internet population, every major sports' visitors skews higher than average. For example, the U.S. Internet population earning $75K accounts for around 41 percent of the total. In relation, the $75K and above audience at MLB.com is upwards of 53 percent. And the same trend holds true for the rest of the sports websites. In short, the online sports enthusiast appears to have more flexible income than their non-sporting counterparts.

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The data presented also breaks down these sites by age group. The largest target for the coveted 18-34 age bracket are those visitors to NBA.com, with over 38 percent share. However, the NBA group doesn't have the most money to spend – that would be those visitors to NHL.com, followed closely by visitors to MLB.com.

Are you sold on marketing to sports fans? If so, check out TicketNetwork.com's affiliate program through Commission Junction. They just upped their affiliate commissions to 15 percent – one of the highest in the industry. The new rate is valid from October 1 through December 31, 2009. They are also offering coupon promotion through the affiliate program, offering consumers $15 off their purchase of $100 or more.

"TicketNetwork is always searching for new ways to further reward affiliates for their marketing efforts and we determined that the best approach to encourage additional sales is to increase the commission payout to a competitive fifteen (15%) percent," said Crystal Astrachan, Director, TicketNetwork's Affiliate Marketing program. "The solid commitment of TicketNetwork's affiliate marketers has made TicketNetwork's program the fastest growing affiliate program in the ticketing industry," added Astrachan.

Event ticket sales took a hit during the recession. However, the NFL is now in full swing, the NBA and NHL are about to start up and the MLB playoffs are about to begin. With this audience and a 15 percent commission, now is the time to play ball.

Plus, this audience is not just buying tickets – the options are wide open. Amazon and eBay have vast amounts of sports-related material, and there are even affiliate programs with major sports equipment stores like Sports Authority.

Stay up to date on the latest Internet trends:
Request a professional subscription to Website Magazine,
the most popular print publication on Web success.

Want to drive lots of revenue online? The sports arena might be your ticket.

A new comScore report breaks down visitor profiles for the four largest professional sports websites in the U.S.: Major League Baseball (MLB.com), the National Football League (NFL.com), the National Basketball Association (NBA.com) and the National Hockey League (NHL.com). And by their findings, these sports fans have plenty of money to spend.

Take a look at the chart below. What first stands out is that in the $75,000+ category of the U.S. Internet population, every major sports' visitors skews higher than average. For example, the U.S. Internet population earning $75K accounts for around 41 percent of the total. In relation, the $75K and above audience at MLB.com is upwards of 53 percent. And the same trend holds true for the rest of the sports websites. In short, the online sports enthusiast appears to have more flexible income than their non-sporting counterparts.

article continues below …

The data presented also breaks down these sites by age group. The largest target for the coveted 18-34 age bracket are those visitors to NBA.com, with over 38 percent share. However, the NBA group doesn't have the most money to spend – that would be those visitors to NHL.com, followed closely by visitors to MLB.com.

Are you sold on marketing to sports fans? If so, check out TicketNetwork.com's affiliate program through Commission Junction. They just upped their affiliate commissions to 15 percent – one of the highest in the industry. The new rate is valid from October 1 through December 31, 2009. They are also offering coupon promotion through the affiliate program, offering consumers $15 off their purchase of $100 or more.

"TicketNetwork is always searching for new ways to further reward affiliates for their marketing efforts and we determined that the best approach to encourage additional sales is to increase the commission payout to a competitive fifteen (15%) percent," said Crystal Astrachan, Director, TicketNetwork's Affiliate Marketing program. "The solid commitment of TicketNetwork's affiliate marketers has made TicketNetwork's program the fastest growing affiliate program in the ticketing industry," added Astrachan.

Event ticket sales took a hit during the recession. However, the NFL is now in full swing, the NBA and NHL are about to start up and the MLB playoffs are about to begin. With this audience and a 15 percent commission, now is the time to play ball.

Stay up to date on the latest Internet trends:
Request a professional subscription to Website Magazine,
the most popular print publication on Web success.

Google has introduced the Google Merchant Center, designed to replace Google Base for submitting products to the search engine.

Google says that Merchant Center provides a better-optimized experience for product listings. The Merchant Center interface is similar to Base and uses the same account info. Just sign into Merchant Center with your Google Base account and you’ll see your feeds, items, FTP settings, etc.

Non-product items still use Google Base. If you the same account for Merchant Center (for products) and Base (for non-products), Google says you’ll need to reset your FTP settings in Google Base.

Microsoft has filed a document with the SEC showing that top executives at the software giant have received pay cuts. Basically, some millionaires are making a few million less than they normally would.

In related news, Kleenex was having a hard time moving tissue boxes off the shelves this week.

Meanwhile, Steve Ballmer released a 1,300 word dissertation on his thoughts regarding the “new normal” which is translating into the “new efficiency.” Basically, people are saving more and spending less. You would think that would translate into a lower Windows 7 price, but somehow I doubt that’s gonna happen.

Instead, Ballmer talked about how upgrading to Windows 7 will save companies money in the long run. Pay now, benefit later. That must have been the theme for those pay cut conversations with the execs as well.