Google is reportedly set to pay $5.3 billion for Groupon, a spectacular investment that would give The Big G a compelling way to get close to local businesses, leverage Gmail and really rev up a social media paradigm (as opposed…
Today, RingRevenue announced it has raised a $4 millon Series B round led by GRP Partners and Rincon Venture Partners. This brings the company's total funding to $7.6 million since its 2007 founding. The vote of confidence was based on the…
Local media brands continue to look for ways to populate their sites with local bloggers and Twitterers. In return, they provide them with a bigger platform. The latest to jump into the game is NBC Universal, which paidContent reports has…
I recently spent two weeks attending directory industry events and meeting with companies in the space in Europe and Asia. Many of the issues facing the industry are amazingly consistent across geographical boundaries. There is a need to transform, and…
In case you missed them, here are a few headlines and links to posts over the past week from our Mobile Local Media blog. You can also subscribe to the RSS feed here, and the e-mail alert here. -- Thoughts on JiWire’s Acquisition…
If you haven't heard, Wi-Fi-focused mobile ad network JiWire has acquired mobile local start-up NearbyNow for an undisclosed sum. To do a bit more justice to the latter, it works with brands, retailers and print publications to make local product…
The hordes of shoppers who still enjoy standing in lines and fighting for parking spaces on the “Black Friday” after Thanksgiving is an offline event. Or is it? Local sites are prepping shoppers who want to see what’s available at…
Today Yelp announced its latest move down the LBS path, with a new set of tools for merchants to create and manage local check-in deals. The product, on which we were briefed yesterday, follows last January's launch of check-ins for…
In parallel with our constant harping on the need for more substance in check-in services, there has been a general movement to "move beyond the check-in." We discussed it recently with Gowalla's Andy Ellwood, and it's becoming a common talking…
Groupon has been a phenomenal success in the deal-a-day space, and we envision continued success for the segment's pioneer. But what shape will that success take? At our Marketplaces conference last March in San Diego, CEO Andrew Mason told us…
Perhaps in anticipation of next week's slow news cycle (at least in the U.S.), this week has seen a particularly frenetic pace of mobile industry news. Lots of our coverage is in the previous posts and pages. Beyond that, here…
Last night, Local Insight Media's parent company filed for Chapter 11 protection. In speaking with President and CEO Scott Pomeroy early this morning, it became clear that this is a necessary step in ensuring the business can recapitalize its debt…
Fresh off its partnership with Target, and just in time for the holiday shopping season, Shopkick has announced it's available in the Android Marketplace. The free app will contain all of the features of its iPhone forebear. This obviously now expand…
Leading off the day at the Internet Summit, Chip Perry, CEO of AutoTrader, revealed that the company's main business focus is not on e-commerce but on filling the gaps in the consumer shopping experience and providing valuable tools for sellers.…
There is a lot going on in online media on the East Coast evidenced by the panel on geolocation here at the Internet Summit in Raleigh, North Carolina, sponsored by TechMedia and Southern Capital Ventures. Geolocation continues to be major…
While Apple iOS and Google Android have attracted hundreds of thousands of apps, BlackBerry remains stuck at some single-digit percentage of that number. Is it that BlackBerry users don't have the same appetite for apps that other smartphone users have?…
A panel at today's Web 2.0 Summit tackled the hot topic of location-based services. Composed fully of speakers and companies we'll have at ILM:10, the panel discussed how location will be a component of most online and mobile products ...…
Group software seems obsolescent in the social revolution. Or is it? A few weeks ago, John Battelle’s Federated Media acquired Big Tent, the women’s group enabler with 1.3 million users. It apparently plans to target women with very specific advertising.…
Content remains king on the Internet mainly because there are more ways to produce, connect and interact with content than ever before. According to Rod Smith of IBM, “there are more ways to dig into content than ever before, but…
Local food festivals (“Taste of Seattle,” “Taste of Hillcrest,” et al) are a great way to taste samples from many restaurants at one time. Usually, they require a single ticket, with proceeds often going to charity. A more recent phenomenon…
