There’s been a lot of Advertising news from the majors the past few days. This one is from Microsoft;

Microsoft Develops Classified Service

“By ALLISON LINN, AP Business Writer
Wed Nov 30, 6:06 PM ET

SEATTLE - Microsoft Corp. is developing an online classified service to compete with the likes of Craigslist and becoming the latest company to capitalize on growing consumer interest in buying and selling everything from cars to baby-sitting services on the Web.”

To compete with - Craigslist ?

craigslist is about:

  • giving each other a break, getting the word out about everyday, real-world stuff.
  • restoring the human voice to the Internet, in a humane, non-commercial environment.
  • keeping things simple, common-sense, down-to-earth, honest, very real.
  • providing an alternative to impersonal, big-media sites.
  • being inclusive, giving a voice to the disenfranchised, democratizing …
  • being a collection of communities with similar spirit, not a single monolithic entity.

    • Craigslist did a wonderful job during Hurricane Katrina!

    MSN also did a wonderful job for Hurricane Katrina!

    “The service will seek to be even more geographically personalized than Craigslist’s city-oriented sites by asking sellers to provide a ZIP code for searching purposes, said Garry Wiseman, an MSN product unit manager. For example, users could say they only wanted to find jobs, apartments or garage sales within a five-mile radius of where they live.”

    From the craigslist fact sheet;

    Q: What is craigslist?
    A: Local community classifieds and forums - a place to find jobs, housing, goods & services, social activities, a girlfriend or boyfriend, advice, community information, and just about anything else — all for free, and in a relatively non-commercial environment.

    Q: How many craigslist sites are there, when were they launched, and why is craigslist expanding?
    A: Sites are added in response to user request. There are now 190 craigslist sites in all 50 US states, and 35 countries

    “Microsoft employees are testing the product right now, and a broader public pilot is expected in the coming months.”

    Q: How many people use craiglist?
    A: More than 10 million each month

    Very interesting…

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