Ask.com focuses on raising the bar for local search through AskCity
IAC/InterActiveCorp’s Ask.com has introduced AskCity, a new local search service that integrates the best local information on the web with a distinctive, “all-in- one” user interface and intuitive search tools.
Published: 05 Dec 2006
IAC/InterActiveCorp’s Ask.com has introduced AskCity, a new local search service that integrates the best local information on the web with a distinctive, “all-in- one” user interface and intuitive search tools.
A free service, the new AskCity is immediately available at http://city.ask.com, as well as via the Ask.com homepage Toolbox (www.ask.com).
“Local is one of the top five categories in search, yet it’s the one with the lowest user satisfaction,” said Jim Lanzone, chief executive officer, Ask.com.
“We’re raising the bar for local search by introducing a product that seamlessly combines the best content, technology and tools in one place. We call that place AskCity,” said Lanzone.
“Content is one key to doing local search right, and as part of IAC, Ask.com had unfiltered access to our sister companies’ leading local content. We were able to remix that content using our own search recipe, combine it with content from many non-IAC companies, and design our own experience around it. The result is, we believe, the most comprehensive and flat-out helpful local search product available,” he said.
“This is really a big move forward for [IAC] to show the world that they know how to bring all these properties together,” Allen Weiner, an analyst for Gartner, said according to itnews.com.au.
As per the information available, the site establishes a platform for the potential integration of other IAC properties. “AskCity.com is said to integrate search results with feature filled maps as well as ticket booking and reservations for restaurants to add to and improve on Ask.com’s search engine and services offered by other search engines. The new site may not jump ahead of the game but we can’t wait to see what AskCity.com will have to offer in terms of features and functionality over the likes of Google.com and Yahoo.com,” reported media.