Barry Diller, the veteran media industry dealmaker, is not unique in spotting the potential for online search advertising. Like many others, he believes the sector will grow strongly for years to come.

His acquisition of search company Ask Jeeves, which ranks a distant fifth in the search scores, is unusual in that IAC/InterActiveCorp Mr Diller's company is also a big user of search. His internet businesses rarely advertise on Ask Jeeves, however. The appeal of Ask Jeeves to advertisers is something Mr Diller thinks he can change.