How to make money on image search?

Search has made gazillions for Google because it captures purchase intent, which they translate into the best possible (for now at least) targeted advertising. So if you're in search it'd make sense to try the same strategy (if it ain't broken, and it sure ain't, don't fix it). It doesn't have to be advertising, but it has to have something to do with purchase intent, helping people find what they're looking to buy, and monetizing that somehow. Here's an idea - what if I'm looking for a particular product on ebay, but my purchase decision really depends on how the product looks. Maybe it's some object of art. Maybe etsy would be a better example than ebay. I don't know what you're technology is like so it's hard to tell. In any case, I'd look at riya.com - are they your competitors?

have your normal search results in the middle and paid image results on the side clearly marked as sponsored images