Wait. Google, Microsoft, Yahoo Agree On Something?
How does that help? Well, for Webmasters that have multiple URLs that all point to the same page, it allows search engines to arrive at the original URL and not index multiple pages that all go to the same place. According to The New York Times' citing of several estimates, up to 20 percent of URLs on the Web are duplicates.
There were high-fives all around from companies not exactly known for detente.
"There is a lot of clutter on the Web and with this, publishers will be able to clean up a lot of junk. I think it's going to gain traction pretty quickly," said Matt Cutts, a Google engineer, to the Times.
A posting on Google's Webmaster Central Blog demonstrates examples of how search engines can confuse preferred versions of URLs with their duplicates. Google Indexing Team engineer Joachim Kupke wrote that relative paths can be used to specify canonical URLs, and that Google also allows slight differences in the canonical itself and the content.
The SEO standard is called Canonical Link Tag.
"If your site has identical or vastly similar content that's accessible through multiple URLs, the format provides you with more control over the URL returned in search results," Kupke said. "It also helps to make sure that properties such as link popularity are consolidated to your preferred version."
It's Google's baby, but both Yahoo and Microsoft told the Times they were on board.
"We are happy that everyone is going to support the same implementation," said Nathan Buggia, a lead program manager at Microsoft, to the Times. "It is an important step because all the search engines are coming out with it," added Priyank Garg, director of product management for Web search at Yahoo.