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Acxiom(R) Enriches Online Directory Data for More Comprehensive Local Business Search Results

Posted on: Wednesday, 4 June 2008, 09:00 CDT

When consumers go to the Web to search for a local business, they're looking for more than addresses and phone numbers. Consumers seek a wide variety of useful information: Does that popular restaurant offer catering? Is that hardware store open on weekends? Does that furniture dealer offer free delivery? If the search engine or local portal they are using cannot provide this additional information, users will quickly switch to another online source.

"Consumers 'vote' on Internet search engines based on the richness of the information those engines provide," said Jonathan Cohn, Acxiom InfoBase-X(TM) data products leader. "If they don't get what they need with a particular search engine or directory service, they will go somewhere else to find out about local businesses, products and services."

To provide more accurate, detailed information for its InfoBase-X Telephone Directories Online, Acxiom(R) Corporation (Nasdaq: ACXM) has entered into an agreement with Moon Valley Software, Inc. Moon Valley has developed proprietary software and technology that mines the Web for richer, deeper and more up-to-date business information.

This data will be incorporated into Acxiom's existing online directory files to give local search engines the results their users want and need to make buying decisions. InfoBase-X is the largest repository of U.S. business and consumer marketing data in one source and powers Acxiom's directory products.

"Say you're searching for a pet-friendly hotel," Cohn said. "Getting back a hotel name and phone number is just the beginning of the process in deciding where to stay that night. If the local search engine you're using doesn't give you more than that, you'll go to another one, and the first service loses the chance to be your go-to source in future searches."

The information Moon Valley will integrate into InfoBase-X will not only focus on more detailed merchant attributes, but will also offer a far greater number of merchant Web addresses, so local search publishers can link an online listing to the merchant's own Web site.

Moon Valley's software also standardizes terms by industry and accommodates synonyms and other variants as initial search terms to provide users with what they seek as efficiently as possible.

"This isn't last year's business database - it is a sophisticated, next-generation information source of extensive, relevant data," said Moon Valley CEO Pete Ryan.

Also in the works is what Ryan describes as a "next-generation data delivery system" that will help online publishers stay up-to-date with the latest information. InfoBase-X customers will soon be able to opt for dynamic, real-time updates, corrections, and additions, accessed through an online connection to the database.

"Web users expect detailed information - instantly. This agreement reflects Acxiom's continued commitment to providing the richest, most useful data to our clients," Cohn said. "Moon Valley has developed a solution to this online information gap for Acxiom to incorporate into its extensive online directory data repository."

About Acxiom Corporation

At Acxiom, we make information intelligent for many of the world's leading and most dynamic companies, enabling them to acquire new customers, retain their most valuable customers, communicate with customers in the methods and times they prefer, and make profitable marketing and business decisions. Acxiom's unmatched customer insight is achieved by blending the world's largest repository of consumer data, award-winning technology and analytics, multi-channel expertise, privacy leadership, and superior knowledge of a wide spectrum of industries. Founded in 1969, Acxiom (Nasdaq: ACXM) is headquartered in Little Rock, Ark., with locations throughout the United States and Europe, and in Australia and China. For more information about Acxiom, visit www.acxiom.com.

About Moon Valley

Moon Valley Software, founded in 1988 in Phoenix, is a privately held company specializing in the development and publishing of cutting-edge technology products. Headquartered in Arroyo Grande, Calif., Moon Valley continues its tradition of success with co-development, strategic bundles, and incubation of new technologies. For more information: 805-994-1040, press@moonvalley.com or www.moonvalley.com.

Source: Business Wire

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