GeoGraffiti is now out of beta, letting anyone with a mobile phone in the United States to use their free verbal bulletin board service. Verbal messages, called Voice Marks, are location-specific and left by users who can voice anything from reviews and opinions about local hotspots to random nothingness. Others can access the location-relevant messages when they’re in the area pertinent to the message.
Voice Marks are linked to their location either by zip code or latitude/longitude coordinates so a GPS-enabled mobile device, while handy, isn’t a requirement. Voice Marks related to specific social networks can also be tracked online using GeoGraffiti’s Google Map mashup tool.
GeoGraffiti has a couple of benefits. First off, those of us suffering from map fatigue thanks to the glut of location-based services launching lately don’t necessarily have to look at a map. Second of all, the service doesn’t require a software download so it won’t cram up your mobile device’s memory. All’s you have to do is call (213) 221-3802 to leave a Voice Mark, or if you’re okay looking at another map you can go online and use the Google Maps tool on GeoGraffiti’s website.
The service has also been released as an iPhone app, which you can view a demo of below. The full release is after the jump.
(LOS ANGELES, CA – September 9, 2008) – GeoGraffiti, a leading innovator in mobile local information, announces the launch from beta of the GeoGraffiti telephone-based information exchange service. GeoGraffiti is a free verbal bulletin board that allows people to record and publish location-specific phone messages, called “Voice Marks”, or retrieve and hear Voice MarkTM messages left by others in the area, whether on-the-go or in front of a computer. The GeoGraffiti voice platform aggregates and publishes content generated by end users with any mobile phone on any wireless carrier, making it accessible to the entire United States mobile phone user base while traveling, when the information is most pertinent, or via computer.
“With the launch of the GeoGraffiti service, people are now able to share opinions and information about a locality, restaurant, store, park, or really anything else they can think of while they are out on-the-go or in front of a computer,” said Chad Cook, founder, GeoGraffiti. “Do you have a favorite restaurant menu tip? Did you just experience a new place or promotion? Do you have a traffic jam tip? With a quick phone call to GeoGraffiti, you can leave a Voice Mark for others to hear, benefit from and to which they can respond.”
The GeoGraffiti voice platform allows users to share location-specific advice, opinions, warnings and other messages that could benefit other consumers in the present or future. From any mobile phone, GeoGraffiti enables a user to “mark” real-world places by publishing a Voice MarkTM message. A Voice MarkTM is a short voice message captured via phone that shares information about a venue, event, promotion or anything anyone cares to share. The Voice Mark messages are linked to a location using a zip code, or geo-tagged to an exact spot on earth using latitude/longitude coordinates. Users are also able to create, search and track Voice Marks, in relation to a specific community or social network, online via GeoGraffiti’s Google Map mashup tool.
GeoGraffiti is free for consumers to use via a standard phone call to (213) 221-3802, or online via GeoGraffiti’s Google Map mashup tool. No mobile phone activation, software download, or registration is required to use GeoGraffiti’s free location-specific voice bulletin board. For additional information, please visit www.geograffiti.com.
About GeoGraffiti
GeoGraffiti is a mobile 2.0 startup focusing on location-based services. GeoGraffiti’s mission is to organize the mobile phone community’s “wisdom of crowds” intelligence, and to facilitate the exchange of that location-specific intelligence by providing a voice platform that is accessible from any phone and any place. For more information call 317-806-1900 x119 or visit www.geograffiti.com.
