To support its Patch network of local news blogs, AOL is in the process of acquiring hyper-local news aggregator Outside.In, Business Insider reports. No official word on the deal terms, but sources tell BI that AOL is paying less than $10 million for the startup. BI, which first reported deal talks earlier this year, notes: "Based on AOL's properties, it makes sense that Outside.in's technology (and maybe a few employees) will be integrated into Patch." Outside.In was founded in 2006 by author Steven Johnson, and has since received investment from the likes of Union Square Ventures, Marc Andreessen, and …

Vurve -- a startup that promises small businesses "advertising on autopilot" -- just raised $4.5 million in a Series A round led by Spark Capital, along with Dave McClure's 500 Startups and True Ventures. "While many online platforms offer self-service tools that businesses can use to manage their own campaigns, the legwork involved with running these ... can be daunting," explains TechCrunch. Vurve "automates many of the most time-intensive aspects of running marketing online." To streamline its offering even further, the startup has been working with ecommerce platforms like Shopify, which has integrated Vurve directly into its administrator dashboard. …

Under any circumstances, might AOL's acquisition of Huffington Post not result in additional layoffs? No, says AOL head Tim Armstrong. "There will be job changes," Armstrong said at a conference this week as reported by ZDNet. "There's no way around it, but we'll do it thoughtfully." As ZDNet notes, AOL has said that it plans to get $20 million in savings out of the Huffington Post deal, so layoffs were expected. Still, Armstrong says he's sensitive about the business of firing staf,f and tries to be open and transparent about any changes because he knows there have been a …

It seems that consumers spent February doing something retailers love to see--not just shopping, but also shopping steadily, with retail sales gaining in just about every type of store. That will to spend is especially welcome, experts say, since it means people ignored disruptive winter storms and rapidly rising fuel prices to do so. Kantar Retail reports that same-store sales grew 4.4% in February, down a tick from last month's 4.9% gain, but a solid increase over the 3.9% reported in February of last year. And the International Council of Shopping Centers, which tracks a slightly different index of …

Mobile ad firm Tapad, which aims to extend real-time audience-buying to smartphones and connected devices, today announced a group of high-profile initial investors including Brian O'Kelley, former CTO of Right Media and founder of AppNexus; Dave Morgan, founder and CEO of Simulmedia and founder of Tacoda; former DoubleClick CEO David Rosenblatt; and Redwood Partners founder and managing partner Michael Flannery. The company did not disclose the amount invested. Started by Thumbplay founder Are Traasdahl, Tapad plans to commercially launch its mobile ad platform later this year. The release is here.

Following weeks of fevered speculation, Apple Tuesday unveiled the latest version of the iPad-a faster, slimmer upgrade of its iconic tablet computer offering rumored new features like a front-facing camera and built-in gyroscope. The new model, shipping March 11, will also be available in white as well black, at same $499 entry price as the original. The original iPad sold about 15 million units last year but a horde of manufacturers including Motorola, HTC, Samsung and Research in Motion have launched, or are developing, competing tablets to try to end Apple's early dominance in the category. Despite taking a medical leave …

Following in the steps of rival carrier AT&T, Verizon Wireless plans to shift from offering unlimited to tiered-data plans this summer. Speaking at an industry conference, Verizon Communications CFO Fran Shammo said details for the new plans haven't been worked out but that they would be based on consumption, different connection speeds, or both. AT&T introduced tiered pricing last June with the launch of the iPhone 4. It offers 200 megabytes for $15 per month and 2 GB for $25 per month. Verizon recently released its own version of the iPhone 4 with a $30 unlimited plan to help attract …

Mobile ad network Millennial Media has joined companies such as Microsoft, The Coca-Cola Company and the Tribune Company as a premium member of the Mobile Marketing Association. The top-tier membership level entails a six-figure commitment to help promote the mobile marketing industry. In return, participating companies get prominent sponsorships opportunities at MMA events and other benefits. In connection with the move, the MMA said Millennial would assume a leadership role in developing an industry-wide Mobile Marketing Guide, drawing on research across the industry "to capture the state of the global mobile market." Read more here.

Coupon kingpins Valassis and News America Marketing say they've struck a cross-publishing agreement, intended to expand the digital couponing efforts of both companies. Valassis, based in Livonia, Mich., owns redplum.com, and News America owns SmartSource.com, both leading digital coupon sites. The intention is to make both sites more robust, John Lieblang, president of Valassis Digital Media, tells Marketing Daily, greatly expanding the number of coupons available to consumers. RedPlum reaches some 100 million shoppers weekly. News America Marketing distributes FSIs to millions of consumers each month, with more than 1,600 newspapers and 55,000 supermarket, drug, office, mass merchandisers …

Facebook has acquired mobile developer Beluga in a move aimed at enhancing the social network's growing mobile presence, according to a TechCrunch report confirmed by the companies. Founded by a team of ex-Google engineers, Beluga has created an app that lets groups of friends communicate in real-time on the go. Competitors in the group messaging space include TextPlus and GroupMe. In a statement, Facebook said Beluga would continue to operate as it does today pending the release of more details in the coming weeks. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Facebook has more than 200 million mobile …