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The new service combines the convenience of location and personal choice with the immediacy and ease of purchasing tickets or making reservations directly from any smartphone or Internet-accessible cell phone. The site launched its mobile capabilities by giving away two free tickets worth up to $250 to registered users every 60 days.
Broadcom Corporation announced that it will upgrade its location based services (LBS) infrastructure to add Wi-Fi positioning to its LBS portfolio of services.
Broadcom will use the Wi-Fi Positioning System developed by Skyhook Wireless, Inc., which pioneeredthe development of Wi-Fi positioning. The Broadcom LBS services business currently supports over 20 million active customers in over 170 countries; having provided over one billion extended ephemeris, or Long Term Orbits(TM) (LTO) downloads to date.
Using GPS alone to determine a location works well in outdoor environments, but the ability to determine one's location in this way is often impaired in deep urban and indoor environments.
Broadcom will integrate the Skyhook solution with its chipsets and LBS solutions to enable hybrid location positioning. The Skyhook Wireless(TM) solution produces accurate location information by detecting Wi-Fi access points and comparing them against a known database of geo-located points.
The PocketFinder family of products uses advanced technology to help
families stay connected. The smallest known single-board GSM/GPS device
easily fits into a pocket, purse or backpack, and can be accessed via
the Internet, cell phone or landline to show its exact location in real
time. In addition, the devices include several advanced features, such
as allowing users to designate customizable alert areas as electronic "fences"
to notify them when a family member or pet leaves or enters a specified
area. The devices can even track vehicle speeds to encourage safe
driving decisions. The PockFinder devices sell for $129 with chargers.
The $9.95 service will be offered for $6.95 per month for customers who sign up during the first 30 days as a launch promotion. The $6.95 is not a teaser rate. It will not change as long as the account remains active and current,.
Alltel’s Workforce Locator, a tracking and mobile resource management (MRM) solution designed by Autodesk, is now f BREW devices enabled with location-based services (LBS) such as the Samsung R430, Samsung U520, LG AX260 and the LG AX300.
Alltel Workforce Locator allows businesses to gain visibility into the field by viewing Web-based maps enabling management to quickly locate their workforce. The software maximizes resources by streamlining routing and fleet management, which can help reduce fuel costs. For example, Workforce Locator directs employees to the correct job site and improves communications between office management and staff, with the ability to send job updates via text messaging. Workforce Locator also delivers improved response time to customer service calls and reduces employee downtime. In addition, the scalable platform can accommodate any number of workloads or users for businesses, regardless of size.
The company also announced it will launch two new navigation applications in the coming weeks, MapQuest Navigator and AAA Mobile navigator. The new applications add to the company's AT&T Navigator and AT&T Navigator Global Edition offerings, underscoring its focus on providing superior navigation tools and customer choice. The A-GPS deployment primes the network for further expansion this year in the LBS category, including planned launches of a location-enabled social networking service and a family-oriented service along with industry-leading privacy controls
infoGROUP announced its infoUSA database license division has licensed its US business database to Limbo, social networks.
infoUSA databases help populate the geographic information within Limbo’s location tools, giving members quick access to places nearby. Limbo members use the directory information to easily set themselves to a specific location so people can see where they are, or search nearby listings to find places to go and things to do. Limbo members set their activities and locations through Limbo’s website, mobile web, text messages, or through applications for mobile phones such as the iPhone.
Whrrl, the location-aware social networking and discovery service from Pelago, Inc., today announced that it has signed an exclusive marketing agreement with Deep Focus to promote the hit HBO series through the new service.
The promotion creates Whrrl accounts for all primary Entourage characters updated with specific location information and character commentary on the many chic bars, restaurants, clubs and other exciting places visited during the series. The promotion gives fans a fun way to get involved with the characters and provides a new medium for learning about the trendy hotspots featured on the show.
Sprint's XOHM WiMAX mobile broadband customers can have information customized for their locations and personalized to their needs with new Sprint ecosystem agreements for location based services.
Location-based content from leading brands include
uLocate Communications,the primary partner in building XOHM's location enabled mobile experience, is providing its WHERE platform and leading friend finding application Buddy Beacon to connect XOHM customers with their favorite people, places and things. Through WHERE, XOHM users will have access to local information including restaurant reviews, news, events, weather and much more. Select launch partners on the WHERE platform include Yelp, Eventful, Topix, NAVTEQ and Accuweather.
Yahoo! has opened up Fire Eagle (http://fireeagle.yahoo.net),
an open platform that helps users take their location to the web while giving
them the ability to easily control how and where their location data is shared.
Fire Eagle gives users a place to store and manage information about their
location, and offers developers clear protocols for updating or accessing that
information. Because it's open, any networked service can use Fire Eagle to
respond to a user's location - to help them find their friends, annotate the
world or find nearby services or local information.
go2 Media now offers go2 Traffic with real-time traffic information and alerts for mobile phones.
go2 Traffic will help drivers and travelers make informed decisions about the best time to leave and the fastest route to take anywhere in the U.S.. Mobile users can access go2 Traffic through the “Local Traffic” link on go2’s main deck, and will be able to quickly find real-time local traffic conditions, commuter updates and alternate routes powered by NAVTEQ Traffic.com. go2 users also have easy access to local travel information such as car rental locations, cheap gas stations, nearby repair shops and more through go2 Travel.
CSR, and Skyhook Wireless maker of the Wi-Fi Positioning System and XPS 2.0, the hybrid positioning system, announced a partnership that will bring advanced location capabilities to CSR’s Wi-Fi silicon.
Skyhook Wireless’ core technology, the Wi-Fi Positioning System (WPS), is software that produces accurate location information by detecting Wi-Fi access points and comparing them against a known database of geo-located points. By combining CSR’s UniFi, embedded Wi-Fi chips, and GPS location solutions with Skyhook’s positioning capabilities, this partnership will enable device makers to more easily support and launch location based services that satisfy consumer location needs.
The technology provided by CSR and Skyhook will capitalize on the emergence of Wi-Fi enabled mobile devices and provide greatly enhanced positioning availability and accuracy for the growing location-based services market. This technology will enable device makers and application developers to provide consumer-ready location technology that works quickly and accurately, indoors or outside. The system will benefit consumers by enabling them to more quickly and reliably perform tasks such as planning a trip, finding friends nearby or locating the closest restaurant.
Properties that advertise with Apartment Guide and ApartmentGuide.com will have their listings uploaded for access by mobile subscribers.
Verizon Wireless, and Loopt announced today that Verizon Wireless customers can now access Loopt's interoperable location-based service.
Loopt allows friends who opt in to be located by other friends to show where the friends are located and what they are doing via detailed, interactive maps on their mobile phones. Loopt helps friends connect on the go and navigate their social lives by orienting them to people, places and events. Users can also choose to permit sharing of location updates, geo-tagged photos and comments with friends in their mobile address book or on online social networks, communities and blogs.
Loopt is available today on select Verizon Wireless phones for $3.99 monthly access in the Tools on the Go, Featured Applications and Community shopping aisles in the Get It Now virtual store. Customers need a Get It Now-enabled handset and Verizon Wireless digital service to access the Get It Now virtual store.
