When it comes to small businesses on the Web, is it really only about video? AdReady, a new Seattle-based company started by Classmates.com alum and backed by Madrona and Bain Capital, thinks banners are really where the impact is. Local…
Former AOL President and MTV founder Bob Pittman has lately focused on investments as head of the Pilot Group (he is a pilot). In an interview with broadband consultant Will Richmond's VideoNuze on the eve of the NATPE show in…
EBay hasn’t really scored with any of its local initiatives during CEO Meg Whitman’s 10-year tenure (she is retiring). The local version of eBay Motors, for instance, never seems to get out of the gate. But the stars seem better aligned…
The Los Angeles Times and the rest of the Tribune Co. have been going through a very public belt tightening. The most recent round of cutbacks apparently played a role in the departure of Editor James O’Shea. But when it…
Gannett has named PointRoll chief Chris Saridakis as its new senior vice president-chief digital officer, reporting to longtime vet Jack Williams, who has been named president of the division. PointRoll is a rich media ad agency that Gannett purchased in…
Small-town newspapers and radio stations sometimes get into businesses that media companies in larger markets rarely do. They publish directories, develop Web sites, provide Internet access -- you name it. Thousands of newspapers are still family-owned. Increasingly, though, more are controlled…
MySpace is moving beyond personal and band profiles, and in fact, already has 3 million businesses, according to coverage by PaidContent of comments by Fox President and COO Peter Chernin at a CitiGroup conference in Phoenix. Chernin said the business…
FAST Search and Transfer, whose “enterprise search” makes every element of an organization searchable, is being sold to Microsoft for $1.2 billion after the Oslo-based company severely missed sales goals and was forced last year to lay off a large…
One of the quietest but apparently most successful producers in the local search space has been GeoSign, owned by webpreneur Tim Nye. The Canadian company has incubated TrueLocal, which aggregates local online databases, and is also invested in mobile directory…
Kudzu, the service-oriented rating and review directory from Cox Search, has been under the radar for a while, while similar services (i.e., Judy’s Book, Insider Pages and Backfence) have run into some turbulence. But a recent visit with GM Tom…
Local small-business advertising has been largely synonymous with Yellow Pages. But a compelling case for the rise of classified-and-vertical marketplaces is made by Oodle CEO Craig Donato. (It is a position that we obviously admire, having just launched our Marketplaces…
CBS Radio will begin selling inventory for audio and video ads across all its stations in a three-year deal it has signed with New York City-based TargetSpot, an 18-person specialized agency run by Kanoodle vet Doug Perlson. Union Square Ventures’…
CBS Radio will begin selling inventory for audio and video ads across all its stations in a three-year deal it has signed with New York City-based TargetSpot, an 18-person specialized agency run by Kanoodle vet Doug Perlson. Union Square Ventures’…
It was perhaps inevitable, but the first newspaper has made the decision to abandon print and go “online only.” The Cincinnati Post, a 126-year-old paper owned by E.W. Scripps, published its final edition on Dec. 31 at the end of…
Thanks for all the holiday cards, and good wishes. It is kind of inspiring that many companies are donating to some wonderful charities. It is great to work with such thoughtful people. Here are some favorite e-cards. Zillow and AdMission probably…
AnchorFree, an ad-supported Wi-Fi service, says it is seeking to add additional verticals to its hotel and coffee shop strongholds. The company, which has raised $6 million and already has 10,000 locations and 5.4 million user sessions a month, wants…
has bet heavily on building a voice search platform for telecom carriers, Yellow Pages publishers and other providers of ad-supported directory assistance. Now the 150-person company, partially owned by YPG and just listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, has enhanced…
The battle for IYP (and local search) supremacy hinges on a number of factors. One of which is likely to be the acquisitions of lateral properties (i.e., RHD and Business.com). So, we note with interest that former AOL chief Jon…
BooRah, the Bay Area restaurant review site, has raised some seed funding from Storm Ventures and other investors (amount undisclosed) and plans to use the money to grow beyond its roots as a tech vendor for alternative newsweeklies. The…
Radio has virtually been a non-starter for local online sales, but a new video initiative by Clear Channel Radio, the nation’s largest chain with stations in 80 U.S. markets, might ramp things up. The video initiative, using Denver Multimedia (DMM) as…
