Local.com patents SMS delivery system

Advertisers interested in SMS listings and ads will want to pay attention to a new patent secured by Local.com. The patent is for the delivery of sponsored directory listings through SMS and MMS platforms. It is the first of its kind.

by Kristina Knight

"Our patent 7,200,413 is directly related to a referral advertising model such as pay-per-click or pay-per-call listings, which are delivered to consumers as a result of an enhanced directory assistance inquiry or local search, where the results can be provided to consumers via many mobile channels, including voice,” said Heath Clarke, Chairman and CEO, Local.com.

Clarke went on to say that the majority of local searches are currently coming from directory assistance, making their new patent relevant to online and mobile advertisers. "We see pay-per-call or pay-per-click emerging as the most effective monetization model," he said.

In addition to the paid search patent, Local.com recently secured another patent for the delivery of geographically targeted ads resulting from organic search results.

To date local search has been quite fragmented between online marketers and mobile marketers. These new technologies in development could help marketers with both types of ads, resulting in higher ROI from ad campaigns across the online board.

Local.com is also positioning their brand as the online resource for local advertisers. According to research from comScore, Local.com saw 18% growth in IYP searches from Q1 2006 to Q1 2007.

According to comScore, Local.com experienced an 18% surge in the number of Internet Yellow Page searches from 1Q 06 to 1Q 07.