Comcast Corporation last week announced the relaunch of“EveryBlock Philly,” a hyper-local, free online service and mobile app that aggregates and curates content at the neighborhood level. EveryBlock is an interactive, personalized news feed that allows users to stay connected with neighbors, interact and share what’s happening on their block, and discover great content and information from around the City.
EveryBlock was previously available in Philadelphia from 2008 through 2013 and in this new version users receive personalized information from more than 500 local sources, including news, reviews, events, blogs and other web content, civic data — like crime reports and 311 requests —as well as user-generated questions and comments. Up-to-the-minute information gets delivered based on users’ custom location preferences where they can choose the content they want and see it by neighborhood or zip code, follow the blocks they live and work on, or even draw a custom location.
“Comcast is committed to bringing technology and information together to improve and strengthen our community,” said Paul Wright, Director of Local Media Development at Comcast.
“We are thrilled to bring this exciting community resource to Philadelphia to help residents, community-based organizations and elected officials communicate and share information.”
To add to EveryBlock’s functionality, Comcast is working with Philadelphia’s growing technology and open data communities to encourage them to suggest enhancements and functionality for the service. Similarly, any local blogger, publisher, or other organization interested in content from EveryBlock can utilize syndication tools at EveryBlock WidgetControl or a more custom integration based on the EveryBlock API. Danny Harvith, Director of Sales and Marketing at Jarvus Innovations and who helped push forward the naming of North 3rd Street to become N3rd Street (“Nerd” St.) in Philadelphia said, “For more than five years, a growing population of residents and professionals have been finding each other in the areas surrounding North 3rd Street. Tech firms, art galleries, historical sites, and everything in between pack this community with a diverse collection of passions. This part of Philadelphia will continue to flourish as we find and meet more likeminded “N3rds” — people who are as passionate about their neighborhood as they are about their work. N3rd St is excited to utilize the EveryBlock platform to provide the community with a hub for all their N3rd Street news, data, and communication. Together, we can provide the tools to continue growing N3rd Street and making our neighborhood a better place to live, work, and play.”
In addition to Philadelphia, EveryBlock also operates in Chicago, and Comcast plans to roll out the platform to additional markets, including Houston, Texas; Denver, Colorado; Medford, Massachusetts (Boston area); Hialeah, Florida (Miami area) and Fresno, California in the coming months.
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