Alistair Barr and Rolfe Winkler, reporting for The Wall Street Journal:

Google Inc. will launch buy buttons on its search-result pages in coming weeks, a controversial step by the company toward becoming an online marketplace rivaling those run by Amazon.com Inc. and eBay Inc. […]

The buttons will accompany sponsored—or paid—search results, often displayed under a “Shop on Google” heading at the top of the page. Buttons won’t appear with the nonsponsored results that are driven by Google’s basic search algorithm.

This feels like the next step for online advertising, but I don’t think I’d ever use it. I already avoid clicking on ads in search results and I can’t imagine deciding to purchase something without visiting the website selling it first.