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CNet Plays the Local Shopping Game

Posted: November 22, 2005

CNET Networks, Inc. (Nasdaq:CNET), today announced local shopping functionality that lets consumers find stores in their area that stock the technology gadgets they want to buy. Part of CNET’s annual holiday line-up of resources for consumers, the new local shopping functionality serves up comprehensive local store information, such as the store’s hours, contact information and directions.

I searched CNet for local shopping, and the closest function I could find was a ‘enter zip code’ form. After filling it out for 10 zip codes in the Chicago area, the only results that were brought back were for ‘online stores’. No physical stores were found. Circuit City is one of the ‘online stores’ and has about a dozen stores within 20 miles of me, yet none of these actual stores were presented.

Hopefully, this type of data integration grows over the next few months. It’s a great idea in theory, but there’s not an easy way for an advertiser to add inventory, or for a user to pull back local information yet.

Keep an eye on CNet, they are quite leaders in many online review areas, and I’m expecting them to quietly integrate this data to provide some great functionality without a lot of press to keep one informed.

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