There has not been all that much fresh coverage of the rumor, reported earlier this week, that Microsoft may acquire Yell Group, the U.K.-based international publisher with operations in the United Kingdom, the United States, Spain and Latin America. We have…
Reuters is reporting a rumor that Microsoft CEO Steve Balmer has set his sights on Yell Group as his next acquisition target, which has led to a bump in Yell's share price. We don't know if this is true. It is,…
Yellowbook has launched a new microsite to encourage consumers to download and share spots from its new ad campaign. The site also links to Yellowbook's YouTube channel. TKG recently posted on the new Yellowbook campaign and brand makeover. We see…
Yell Group announced results today that showed all its operating groups generated top-line growth in its 2007-08 financial year (ended March 31), with almost all the growth coming from the Internet. The company emphasized that it hit its EBITDA guidance for…
Denver-based Local Matters announced a major deal with European Directories "whereby Local Matters will develop and enhance the online white and yellow pages websites across European Directories’ 8-country publishing operations," according to the press release issued today. European Directories is a…
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…
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…
Perry Evans has a great post today on the opportunity and threat Yellow Pages publishers face from the verticalization of local search. We thank him for acknowledging TKG's role in highlighting the emergence of vertical search at our Drilling Down on…
At this writing, Idearc Media's stock was trading higher (up about 28 percent at noon Eastern) after an earnings announcement that shows the company has managed its costs well enough to grow EBITDA, while its revenues continued to slide. Here…
Yellowbook has unveiled a new television ad campaign, replacing the kinda cheesy Kung Fu ads (sorry, David Carradine, you did what you could) with a much slicker campaign that focuses on promoting use of Yellowbook's online directory (which is also sporting…
Speaking this afternoon at at The Kelsey Group's Drilling Down on Local conference in Seattle, Kurt Weinsheimer, GM for Local Marketing Services at Spot Runner, offered a simple set of rules for effectively selling to small businesses. Target the right customers. …
A leading auto vertical and Google sat on stage together this morning and provided some insight into how they might coexist. Cars.com President Mitch Golub made clear that sales and customer service will serve as an effective firewall that will…
In a session called "The Online City: Close Up on Seattle" here at Drilling Down on Local, The Seattle Times' Patricia Lee Smith reiterated a point made earlier by the LA Times' Rob Barrett, which is that online newspapers cannot…
The Nordic directory publisher Eniro announced somewhat disappointing results for the first quarter, with weaker than expected print results not fully offset by online revenues. Eniro President and CEO Tomas Franzén noted that the first quarter is seasonally weak for its online…
Truvo announced today that CEO Andrew Day will step down June 1 and assume the role of chairman, allowing current Truvo Belgium Managing Director Donat Retif to take over as CEO. Retif has been with Truvo since 2005. He previously served…
The U.S. independent publisher White Directory has added two new members to its sales leadership team. Kevin Pavelski, vice president of digital expansion, and Pat Balles, vice president of global markets. From the press release: "Pavelski comes to White…
Charles Stubbs has left his position as president of Yellowpages.com (a unit of AT&T) to become CEO of Atlanta-based Primedia, which publishes a variety of print and online vertical consumer guides, including Apartment Guide and New Home Guide, ApartmentGuide.com, NewHomeGuide.com…
Yellow Book has been gradually closing the gap with its U.S. IYP rivals, which testifies to the publishers' increasing emphasis on its online business as a driver of future growth. According to data recently put out by comScore, Yellowbook.com was the fastest…
Citing data from the latest Industry Usage Study, the Yellow Pages Association is trying to overcome some of the myths and misperceptions about who uses print Yellow Pages, how often and why. In a press release issued today, the YPA…
The leadership of the Yellow Pages Association came out swinging against its growing number of critics and doubters at yesterday's kickoff of the group's annual conference in Las Vegas. Chairman Dave Swanson (also CEO of R.H. Donnelley) gave a passionate…
