The Telegate AG has given its online directory 11880.com a facelift: the portal will open with a location-based local search for the correlating city. The new feature is described as being more local, personal, and structured by Kirstin Bergmann in the company’s official blog. Read the rest of this entry »

Meinestadt.de has added a new rating feature to its mobile local-search application for the iPhone and Android. Users can immediately begin to see user ratings for stores, services, and restaurants, and add in their own two cents, all on-the-go. Read the rest of this entry »

Microsoft has released its geodata service “Streetside” in Germany as a new feature on its local search engine, “Bing Maps”. Bing Maps has thus become a competitor on the same level of “Google Maps”, which has offered its own panoramic image service “Street View” for about a year. Read the rest of this entry »

The eleventh representation Ipsos-study about the use of directories has released some amazing results: not only do 96.3 percent of all Germans use various directories in their search for private and business contacts in addition to shopping possibilities, but also that the printed version remains the most popular. This makes 2011 the busiest year for directories, despite competition from search engines and other locally and regionally oriented media forms, according to the VDAV (Verband Deutscher Auskunfts- und Verzeichnismedien), who directed the study. Read the rest of this entry »

Google has taken over the company Clever Sense, which developed the successful local recommendation app “Alfred”. The startup seems to be over-joyed about the current developments, as seen in a press statement. The team is excited to belong to Google. Through cooperation, the company is one step closer to helping the world around itself. Read the rest of this entry »

With the new 3.0 version of the mobile iPhone application from Das Örtliche, users can not only find business and private contacts in their vicinity or the place of their choice, but can also use a new navigation function to reach their destination.
According to the company, Das Örtliche’s app is the only directory search with a navigation system directly integrated into the app. Users don’t need to download any additional software to use the navigation, but can load it directly through the application, be it through an individual search result or direct on the main menu. As in the previous versions of the app, users can enjoy many additional features, from a vicinity search to the free-call function. Read the rest of this entry »

Despite numerous speculations regarding the end of the never-ending row of online coupons, but investors continue to pump large sums into companies like LivingSocial and Plum District. The deal portals, which have specialized themselves in location-based group deals, especially wish to expand their unique selling points with the extended financial support in order to improve their position against competition. But the competition is still strong: the leader of the pack Groupon has introduced a new online-booking possibility with an appointment planner with its new Groupon Scheduler. Read the rest of this entry »

Tupalo.com – a local search platform which doubles as an international directory and rating-community – has announced a new partnership with the technology start-up Yext. Tupalo users in the USA should now be able to find local service providers even more efficiently with the help of the new Yext information provided. Read the rest of this entry »

The free mobile local search application from the directory Gelbe Seiten is now available for all BlackBerry-smartphones that have the 7 OS operating system. According to Gelbe Seiten, the app makes the newest version of the BlackBerry OS to a pocket-sized, multi-media directory expert. Read the rest of this entry »

With the growing threat of a financial crisis in Europe, it’s easy to think that this would hinder the development of the tech sector. Fortunately, this is far from the case. As Ben Broshi reported at the beginning of October, Berlin has been gaining international attention for its rampant growth in the tech world, especially for new startups. Now, the German news provider Der Spiegel has also turned its head towards the Hauptstadt. Read the rest of this entry »