The search engine giant Google Inc. (www.google.com) announced on April 19 that it has introduced its local information and mapping services to the UK, opening up new channels to advertisers in the process. Google Local UK (http://local.google.co.uk) now offers regional information including business listings and related Web pages. It combines local business data from Yell.com (www.yell.com), with local information from Google's index of more than 8 billion Web documents. The service also allows Google AdWords advertisers to reach customers searching for businesses, products and services in their area using locally targeted advertisements.
In addition, Google Maps UK (http://maps.google.co.uk) allows users to navigate through maps and get turn-by-turn directions. Users can drag the map to view the adjacent parts of a map without re-loading the page. The service is integrated with Google Local, so that users looking for local information can see the location of their search results on a map. Google Local results can also be accessed from the standard Google search engine when specific geographical keywords are used. Local results are presented at the top of search results, marked by a small compass icon.
