NearbyNow had a three-pronged announcement today including a $12 million series C round, a distribution partnership with TheFind.com and a new iPhone app. The funding was led by Norwest Ventures and will primarily be used to build infrastructure for traffic…
The latest show of climbing video game sales came in April's 47 percent year-over-year increase. The $1.23 billion in game & console sales was buoyed by continued success of the Nintendo Wii, as well as the release of the hotly…
In its bid to establish itself as a meaningful online company, CBS Interactive has downplayed its traditional strength in local vis-a-vis TV stations, radio stations and outdoor. The company’s just announced acquisition of CNET for $1.8 billion doesn’t necessarily change…
Shopper publications attending the International Classified Media Association meeting in Brussels this week -- the vast majority from outside the U.S. -- are showing resilience against the challenges of the Internet, and looking at new models to sustain their existing…
Google and Office Depot announced a partnership where Office Depot will offer advice and teach small businesses how to use Google AdWords. Any small business that registers and makes an AdWords purchase on the Office Depot site will receive a…
Since the social networking phenomenon began, I have been an advocate of the Yellow Pages developing a platform for niche social networks. Directories cover such a broad array of content that can be related to highly conversational topics, such as…
Two separate but related news items caught my eye today. First, Comcast has acquired social networking technology provider Plaxo in order to integrate social network-like features that let viewers share programming, among other things. Second, Turner Entertainment Networks announced a…
Internet legend Marc Andreessen waxed positive about social networking and VC opportunities for the next five years during a packed luncheon at the Think Tomorrow -- Today conference. Without spending too much time talking about his own social networking venture, Ning,…
Today, I'm at ThinkPanmure's Think Tomorrow -- Today VC summit in Half Moon Bay, California. As Where 2.0 is happening as we speak on the other side of the hill, some attention to location awareness has been paid here as…
Skyhook Wireless announced a series of partnerships that bring location awareness to online applications. These include Krillion, Yahoo! Fire Eagle and CitySquares, to name a few. They'll each use the location awareness of PCs and laptops (via Wi-Fi signal) for…
SmallTown, the Bay Area hyperlocal company, is changing its core focus and will concentrate mostly on getting wider distribution of its WebCards microsites for small businesses. While the nine-person company will continue to maintain its hyperlocal sites, which are now…
Here is the highlight reel from the last week in TKG Blogging. Click below to read each post in full. Kill the Innovators: San Diego U-T Lays Off Online Leaders These are tough, fast-changing times for newspapers, and many of…
These are tough, fast-changing times for newspapers, and many of them are taking severe measures to get back on track. Sometimes, it means putting the innovative online guy in charge of print too, as Bay Area News Group has done…
European Directory Publisher Truvo (formerly World Directories) has extended its mobile search product to the Belgian market. The product utilizes mobilePeople's Java-based Liquid Maps platform, which powers several mobile search platforms being rolled out by directory publishers in Europe. The…
U.K. directory publisher Yell has launched a new Web site designed to help agencies and media buyers evaluate its multichannel products. Yell additionally has dedicated a team of specialists to work directly with agencies. Large accounts are widely viewed as a channeling…
Ad network AdBrite has announced it will power a new ad management dashboard for concert promoter Live Nation. The eFan Finder application is an extension of the existing relationship between the companies that placed geotargeted event ads throughout AdBrite's network…
AgendiZe announced today from the EADP conference in Spain that it will partner with Videoagency to power its video ads with call to action features. This brings AgendiZe's signature click-to-call and save and share features (profiled in a past post)…
Despite some traction by sites like Yelp -- OK, specifically Yelp -- the hybrid IYP/rating-and-review segment remains something of a question mark in the industry. It remains to be seen whether such sites can attract a large number of frequent…
Like Idearc Media earlier this week, R.H. Donnelley received a boost in its share price today after unveiling first-quarter results that showed market conditions are about as bad as expected, but not any worse. The company also unveiled a refinancing plan that…
During DDL last week, I was able to finally meet Palore CEO Hanan Lifshitz. We profiled Palore a year ago, when it was a browser overlay that enhanced search engine results with personalized icon-based notifications of business attributes (pet friendly,…
