Published 24th March
Guest post published on mSearchGroove 
EDITOR’S NOTE: Mobile advertising is certain the hot topic at CTIA, where Mobile Web And Apps World Forum (Ajit Jaokar’s CTIA partner event) was standing room only. (Well done Ajit!) Players from across the ecosystem are anxious to explore new models to monetize inventory, apps and services. However, as I [...]

Published 23rd March
In the space of just a month (March) US directory publisher Dex One (DexKnows.com) announced what I would consider two progressive online partnerships – Is this a sign of things to come to help them develop their fixed online ambitions?
The first gives them Depth – a deal with Yelp, the second Distribution – a deal [...]

Published 22nd March

According to investir.fi and a number of other reliable sources the world’s leading people search engine 123people, from Austria, has been acquired  by the leading French yellow pages company Pages Jaunes.
Financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed. Although rumor is from EUR 10 to 15 million. 123people was profitable, but they will not reveal specific financial [...]

Published 5th February
Key for Traditional media owners to succeed in THE NEW NEW Media world is to determine their unique strenghts and essential characteristics and then focus.
If the relevant organisations can understand their unique strengths and the essential characteristics to their offer then there is the possibility of mapping a sustainable future. Digital has changed the landscape [...]

Published 15th December
In 2007, co-founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates said yellow-pages use among people under 50 would drop to zero in five years.
The trend in the decline in usage of paper directories certainly suggests this is going to be a reality, potentially even quicker than Gates suggested.
Visit any apartment building or business centre lobby the [...]

Published 26th November
First of Martin’s Inside track columns on mobile. Directly from leading online site mSearchgroove.
 
Local focused mobile advertising is shaping up to be more than a revenue opportunity. There is every indication that it will be one the few channels to buck the downward trend in advertising spend over the next few years. Where’s [...]

Published 19th November
Yesterday French yellow-pages publisher PagesJaunes said growth was more important than balance-sheet concerns as it wanted the freedom to be part of an expected consolidation among local information providers.
Chief executive Jean-Pierre Remy told an investor conference the group had no debt due until late 2013, and headroom on its debt covenants of more [...]

Published 2nd November
The past week or so has seen some interesting developments in the European Directory sector. Take three of the largest publishers; Eniro, Pages Jaunes and Yell.
Last week the Swedish Directory publisher Eniro passed a key financial milestone, according to its third-quarter and year-to-date earnings report. Through nine months of 2009, online revenues surpassed [...]

Published 16th October
The Italian newspaper Milano Finanza reports this morning that the three private equity funds that jointly owns the 50% of Seat PG, owner of Thomsons Directories in the UK,  under a joint shareholding agreement have initated negotiation to sell their stakes.
The newsapaper also mentions two possible buyers, two Italian businessmen (Virgilio Degiovanni and [...]

12 October, 2009 
 The Board of Yell today announces that Toby Coppel has been appointed an independent Non Executive Director with immediate effect.
 Toby (aged 37) was, from April 2007 to December 2008, Managing Director of Yahoo! Europe. He joined Yahoo! in 2001 as Senior Vice President, Corporate Development. He was Chief Strategy Officer from 2006 to 2007.
 Toby [...]