Street Fight Daily: Capital One Acquires Bundle, JRC Signs Purchase Agreement

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A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal content, commerce, and technology.

Capital One Acquires Bundle, A Data-Driven Local Business Directory (TechCrunch)
Capital One has acquired the New York-based Bundle Corporation, which first launched back in 2010 as an online tool allowing users to compare their spending habits with others like them. The company aimed to serve as an alternative to local review websites like Yelp by instead offering rankings based on where people actually spent their money, as sourced from anonymous, aggregated consumer spending data.

Journal Register Company, Hedge Fund Sign Purchase Agreement  (Poynter)
The Journal Register Company, which declared bankruptcy in September, signed a “stalking horse” agreement with 21st CMH Acquisition Co., a unit of Alden Global Capital. The purchase may seem a little weird because Alden already owns Journal Register Company. At the time JRC declared bankruptcy, Digital First Media CEO John Paton sent an FAQ to employees that said the company could “no longer afford the legacy obligations incurred in the past.”

What Do LivingSocial and Groupon’s Woes Tell Us about Consumer Interest in Deals? (Screenwerk)
Greg Sterling: The short answer is almost nothing. Many journalists have argued that consumers have soured on “deals” in the wake of the well-publicized struggles at Groupon and LivingSocial, which just laid off 10% of its workforce. What’s changed from 2010-2011 and its daily deal mania is that consumers have grown weary of the “daily deals” style push e-mail model featuring a lot of items that aren’t particularly relevant or interesting.

The (Hyper-Local) Future of Advertising (iMedia Connection)
The trend toward hyper-local advertising doesn’t mean that large clients need to scale back their attempts to engage potential customers nationwide. Companies that are growing market share nationwide are already taking advantage of the hyper-localization trend, tailoring national campaigns to fit regional sensibilities by incorporating city landmarks, references to area sports teams and other local color to grab consumer attention.

Indoor Positioning: Finding the Way Inside (The Economist)
Thanks to free GPS signals broadcast by American satellites, and free online maps from companies like Google, Nokia and Apple, all you need is a smartphone with an internet connection to pinpoint your location on the Earth’s surface and call up maps, directions and local information. Unless, that is, you are indoors. For positioning to work indoors, where people spend most of their time, new technologies are needed.

Elephanti is the Loyalty Card Version of Foursquare Designed to Bring Customers Inside the Retail Store (The Next Web)
Elephanti is the latest service on the market that claims to not only help discover shops, but will let you do smarter shopping. Basically, it’s a mobile application for your iPhone and Android device that’s like a loyalty reward card meeting Foursquare.

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