Also known as hyperlinking. A technology that enables users of electronic documents (such as web pages and email messages) to view either a different document or another part of the same document by clicking on specially coded text (hypertext), icons, or other graphic images (collectively called links or hyperlinks). By clicking on a link in a webpage, the user effectively instructs the browser program to display the linked page, either in place of the original page or in a new browser window or tab, depending on the link's coding (compare to framing). The owner of a website controls the destination corresponding to each link within the site, but any of the linked pages might be part of unaffiliated third-party sites. For example, most banner ads on the web include links to the advertiser's website, and search engine results pages link to many third-party sites.

For more information, see Practice Note, Online Advertising and Marketing: Linking, Framing, Metatags, Banners, Pop-Ups, and Keywords.