News and Analysis
Can the New Scroll Subscription Service Help Embattled Local Publishers?
Tony Haile, until recently the longtime CEO of the highly regarded online-analytics site Chartbeat, is planning to launch a new subscription site that doesn’t try to convert readers from free to paid. He calls it Scroll, and it has $3 million in seed money from formidable publishers including the New York Times, News Corp and Axel Springer.
Latest Posts
Seeking to Connect With Restaurants, Foodspotting Launches ‘Rewards’
While a number of apps allow users to rate restaurants, leave comments, and create a map of what’s nearby, San Francisco-based Foodspotting focuses its attention on the food itself — and on helping food seekers find the specific dish they want nearby. Street Fight recently spoke with Foodspotting founder and CEO Alexa Andrzejewski about the company’s push into local marketing…
Riding Shotgun in Consumers’ Cars, Apple Could Close the Loop
Earlier this week, General Motors announced plans to integrate iOS devices into its on-dash infotainment system, bringing Apple’s virtual assistant Siri to a handful of its smaller vehicles early next year. Siri integration mixed with maps and a rumored radio product could provide Apple with the necessary footing to make a dent in local advertising and finally turn around its inert iAd network…
Openings & New Hires at Patch, MapQuest, Local.com, and More
At JiWire, another departure; Patch brings on a few new department heads; UBL and Delivery.com continue to add to their teams. Plus, longtime Borrell Associates executive Peter Conti makes the jump to Local Media Association, and JT Batson becomes chief revenue officer at Cumulus Media. Looking for a new gig? Openings at Local.com, Patch, Microsoft, Google and more…
PODCAST: This Week in Location-Based Marketing — Esquire, GetGlue
In this week’s episode, hosts Rob Woodbridge and Asif Khan look at jeans that check-in for you; Esquire jumps the gap between magazine and digital; and is Foursquare’s new valuation too high? Plus news from GetGlue, a new Apple patent on location and a clip from the archives with Holger Luedorf, VP mobile and international at Foursquare…
Memo to Hyperlocal Editors: You Too Can Be a Nate Silver
As I watched Nate Silver achieve such success analyzing numbers during the election, I asked myself: Can hyperlocal news sites learn anything from FiveThirtyEight? The question is pertinent because numbers of all kind — far beyond those from polling and elections — are gushing from local governments, but not many of them are showing up in meaningful ways on community sites…
Can Businesses Use Hyperlocal to Leverage Customers’ Politics?
There has been significant coverage about the differences in Democrats and Republicans, but to date there hasn’t been any analysis on real world activities associated with political affiliation. From grocery stores to restaurants, from retailers to gas stations, voting Democrat or Republican plays a part in which establishments we step foot in and which ones we don’t…
Groupon’s Mason: It Would Be ‘Weird’ If Board Wasn’t Discussing My Job
“There’s no question that we’ve had bumps in the road, but Groupon has created not just a business, but an entirely new category,” said the CEO. “If I ever thought I wasn’t the right guy for the job, I would be the first guy to fire myself. I care much more about the success of Groupon than being CEO.”
The Steaks in Square’s Future
Back in June, social/local analyst Rocky Agrawal bet Reuters financial journalist Felix Salmon a steak dinner that Square would be acquired by a company other than PayPal in 2012. At this point, a sale seems pretty unlikely before the end of the year — and I don’t think it’s going to happen anytime soon. So if someone wants to bet me that Square gets acquired before this time in 2013, I’ll take that bet…
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