Gannett Buys Local Search Company

Nearly one year after Gannett purchased rich media firm PointRoll, the publishing giant said it has acquired another Web business--local search company Planet Discover. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Gannett, parent company of USA Today and about 90 daily newspapers, intends to integrate Planet Discover's local search capabilities into its online newspapers and other Web properties. "With this new relationship, we will move more emphatically into deep, robust local search for our 100-plus Web sites," Jack Williams, president of Gannett Digital, said in a statement.

Planet Discover, which is located in Covington, Kentucky, and Cedar Rapids, Iowa, intends to continue working with its existing clients, including other newspapers. Some of the other news sites to use Planet Discover's search technology include knoxnews.com (E.W. Scripps Company's Knoxville News Sentinel), tucson.com (for Tucson Newspapers Arizona Daily Star and Tucson Citizen), triangle.com (a network for six newspapers in the Carolinas), startribune.com (McClatchy's Minneapolis Star Tribune), fresnobee.com (McClatchy's Fresno Bee), newstribune.com (McClatchy's The News Tribune) and tricityherald.com (McClatchy's Tri-City Herald).

Planet Discover also powers search for several travel and tourism sites, including SeeAmerica.org, Gmcvb.com (the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau), Colorado.com, Atlanta.net (travel portal for Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau) and Southcoastusa.com (travel portal for the Gulf Coast).

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