Quand les technologies de l'information et de la communication sont la source d'un projet RSE: Une étude exploratoire sur les moteurs de recherche solidaires.

The web-search market has recently changed with the development of socially responsible search engines (SE). Users can contribute to help charities or reduce human ecological impact for free while searching the internet. The aim of our paper is to understand the underlying mechanisms of socially responsible SE using a double theoretical framework, the economics of prescription and the market for virtue. To do so, we highlight a particular industrial configuration and we analyze entrepreneurs' motivations. The research is exploratory and draws on a single-case study with an embedded design allowing us to look at business models, market structure and entrepreneurial strategies. We distinguish three types of SE (ecological, ethical and charity). On this basis we increase and refine an existing typology of eco-ICT and then we focus the analysis on charity SE. We underline a prominent model based on partnerships strategies; differentiation through charity SE occurs through nonmarket partnerships steering another king of prescription between users and non-profits. The paper contributes to SE studies suggesting that, in the end, the existence of charity SE tends to strengthen traditional SE position.