Deals Target Local Ads

EveryBlock, a “hyperlocal” aggregator of news and other Web content about specific city neighborhoods, has been acquired by Msnbc.com, a Microsoft-NBC Universal joint venture. The deal and other recent developments could give Microsoft advertising customers more local reach in the United States.

Local Content for Local Ads

EveryBlock tracks news, business reviews, real estate listings, photos, government notices, and other Web content about specific neighborhoods in 15 cities. It is similar to other so-called hyperlocal news services, such as Patch (owned by AOL) and The Local (owned by the New York Times). The service contrasts with Microsoft’s earlier local news service, Sidewalk, which was sold to CitySearch (an IAC site) in 1999. In particular, Sidewalk wrote its own content (such as local business reviews), while EveryBlock delivers content from other sites.

In Aug. 2009, Microsoft also expanded its presence in more conventional local media online: Advance Internet, which represents the online interests of some 30 newspapers in the Newhouse chain, agreed to sell ads for the Microsoft Media Network (the company’s consolidated service for placing advertisements on Microsoft sites) and implement Microsoft’s text advertising services on its own sites. While local advertising has contracted sharply in the United States over the past year, local online advertising continues to grow; both the EveryBlock and Advance Internet deals could help Microsoft secure a larger share of that market.