Idearc Media announced today that it has acquired the URL Localsearch.com from AmericanTowns.com and has made an investment in AmericanTowns.com, a network of community-based Web sites. The deal totals US$3.3 million, plus "deferred purchase consideration." Idearc is clearly looking to…
Marchex released a report today that examines some of the opportunities in local search. The report is written on a basic level to educate a general marketplace on local online media and advertising (while not being overly promotional of Marchex).…
Amateur sports and lifestyle services are great vertical categories that are generally worth many times more in their own wrapping than in a magazine, newspaper or Yellow Pages. Active Networks, whose leadership and original funding have some roots from IAC,…
IAC-owned comparison shopping engine Pronto announced today that it will add new features that let users personalize and share information on products. This is also part of a general re-branding that positions social media as a key feature and point…
Each year the ADP midyear convention and ADM annual meeting are held in the same location with the overlap of a giant industry-wide cocktail reception one evening and a joint general session the next morning. Since the Yellow Pages Association holds a board meeting…
Each year the ADP midyear convention and ADM annual meeting are held in the same location with the overlap of a giant industry-wide cocktail reception one evening and a joint general session the next morning. Since the Yellow Pages Association holds a board meeting…
ScanScout, a company we wrote about two weeks ago, announced a strategic investment from Time Warner today. After speaking with CEO Doug McFarland, here are three points that summarize TW's role. Strategic: It isn't fully determined yet, according to McFarland,…
Just 74 days after it launched, and five days after Apple cut its price by $200, the iPhone sold its 1 millionth unit yesterday. It reached this milestone weeks before Apple had forecast, no doubt pushed over the edge by…
Grayboxx Founder Bob Chandra responded, via phone, to criticisms of the site’s launch in Burlington, VT, which resulted in a lot of off-the-mark rankings. Chandra acknowledged that Burlington (population 38,000, with a metro area of about 130,000) may be “too…
We just released our U.S. mobile advertising forecast, and the fact that this market represents a promising opportunity hardly needs repeating. Nevertheless, the U.S. mobile market has remained largely out of reach for many years. The often-cited statistics about how…
Here is a sampling of coverage from this week, in case you missed any posts. Click below to read each post in full. ShopLocal Gets Personal ShopLocal announced today that it will integrate social tools that allow users to establish…
ShopLocal announced today that it will integrate social tools that allow users to establish an identity and share info and commentary on products. This is an interesting step for ShopLocal, which has already been known for some clever marketing tactics,…
It's been a while since we've written about IPTV because of the immediacy of other developing media and their impact on local. There are nonetheless some interesting local implications for IPTV (examined before), though they will take longer to have…
It's been a while since we've written about IPTV because of the immediacy of other developing media and their impact on local. There are nonetheless some interesting local implications for IPTV (examined before), though they will take longer to have…
Business 2.0, one of the last survivors of the original bubble-era "new economy" magazines, announced today it will close its doors. Its final issue will hit newsstands later this month. Rumors and speculation of this day have swirled throughout the…
R.H. Donnelly announced today that it will launch a new free directory assistance product, powered by Call Genie, in four markets (Denver, Spokane, Phoenix and Tucson). 1-800-CallDex will include free local category search and provide addresses, phone numbers, business descriptions,…
Yellow Book today joined Canada’s YPG in launching AgendiZe, the service that captures Yellow Pages and classifieds info and puts it on up to 66 media platforms for recall. On deck for implementation is Belo’s Dallas Morning News. I wrote…
For subscribers of TKG's Interactive Local Media program, a new forecast is available which analyzes mobile advertising. This includes an analysis of structural changes and consumer usage patterns in the United States and Europe; and benchmark ad performance in other…
Yellow Book announced today that it has launched an online video advertising trial. Here is a bit from the press release: The trial is a test of selected Yellow Book advertisers from across the country. The advertisers represent a cross-spectrum…
If we’ve learned anything in 10 years, it’s that building SME Web sites is one tough business. There’s huge churn and heavy competition. Increasingly, there is also more focus on SEO, SEM and promotions. And “easy” paths to riches via…
