Computer networks, such as the Internet, enable transmission and reception of a vast array of information. In recent years, for example, some commercial retail stores have attempted to make product information available to customers over the Internet. It is becoming increasingly popular for information providers to provide mechanisms by which customers can compare such product information across multiple manufacturers and retailers. For simplicity, manufacturers, retailers, and others that sell products to customers are interchangeably referred to herein as “merchants.” For example, Internet search/shopping sites allow customers to compare pricing information for products across multiple merchants.
Customers searching for a product often desire to view products that are related to or serve as alternatives to that product. For example a customer searching for a particular tablet computer may want to view product information regarding comparable tablet computers offered by another manufacturer. However, conventional methods for identifying alternative products are inadequate and often require a significant amount of time to gather enough data to predict with confidence that two products are alternatives.