There had been a worry that what happened to LookSmart could happen to Overture. LookSmart recently lost half of its market value when it was announced that its search deal with Microsoft-owned MSN was ending.
Yahoo! completed its $1.6bn (£960m) acquisition of Overture, the paid-for search specialist, last month and at the time Yahoo! said that Overture has had "positive and productive discussions", but no deal had been signed.
Overture said that it has extended its search distribution relationship with Microsoft in the US and UK through to June 2005.
Under the terms of the new deal, the companies have entered into a paid placement search agreement to provide Overture search results to US and UK users of MSN Search and the agreement allows for the two to potentially expand into additional countries.
Christopher Payne, vice-president of MSN at Microsoft, said: "Overture has been an important search provider to MSN, offering high-quality search listings to MSN customers and strong opportunities for advertisers. We are pleased to continue this mutually beneficial relationship in the US and UK."
Overture's global distribution network includes major web portals, ISPs and other heavily trafficked destination sites.
"Overture is focused on supporting and growing its distribution network by providing value to partners around the world," Ted Meisel, president of Overture, said. "We believe that extending our relationship with MSN in the US and UK will allow us to further develop customised solutions and additional revenue-generating opportunities for our partners."
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