AOL's Patch.org Takes Hyperlocal High Road

AOL plans to launch Patch.org as new charitable

foundation to improve quality of life in low-income communities around the globe - a crowning jewel on a high-minded public-service story that AOL is weaving for its ambitious hyperlocal publishing plan.

"We believe the time is now for local," said Jon Brod, Executive Vice President AOL Ventures, Local & Mapping. Why? Brod cited a growing demand for local information and a $100 billion local advertising market, particularly on mobile phones, along with an growing gap created as traditional media companies scale back.

"The small communities where we live and work most greatly impact our lives," he told the BIA / Kelsey Marketplaces 2010 conference in San Diego Monday. "It's where we believe there isn't enough high-quality content at the local and neighborhood level."

The company's main initiative for doing this is Patch, a network of neighborhood-focused hyperlocal web sites, whose mission is "improve communities and lives of residents through information."

Playing on that theme, Brod shared that Patch got its start when AOL's now-CEO, Tim Armstrong, was looking for volunteer opportunities for his family in Riverside, Conn. Not only did he find little information available online for Riverside, he and Brod found little deep community information for neighborhoods across the country.

To remedy that problem, Patch's startup model is to establish a local, low-cost professional journalist in each of the markets, to write, manage freelancers and encourage community participation.

Brod declined to say what constituted a "low-cost journalist," but did say the early-career professionals were paid "market rates." He also said the expense structure of a Patch site is 4.1 percent of a typical newspaper operation.

Brod took equal pleasure in sharing that this content has ranged from finding lost dogs to finding a local-government candidate in one community who had served jail time for attempted murder. (He didn't win the election.) Uncovering a hazing list at a prestigious high school was another story Patch broke that received national attention.

"The most boring content is hyperlocal content," Brod said, "unless it is your community."

Continuing the public-service theme, Brod shared that the Give 5 program gave every Patch employee 5 paid days to contribute volunteer service in his or her community, and contributed 5 percent of ad space to community efforts.

Finally, he shared that AOL would announce the formation of Patch.org later this week, a new charitable organization to improve quality of life in low-income communities around the globe.

Does that mean that America Online has global aspirations for Patch? Yes, he said, "we believe that there should be a Patch for every community in the world." The technology platform is set up for multiple languages, he said, although the content is not at this time.

Patch currently operates in 41 communities across 4 states, and plans for hundreds of U.S. Installations by yearend. Revenue model currently includes self-service ads as well as sales reps.

Other local expansion by AOL this year include relaunching the City's Best brand for user-selected hot spots in 25 major U.S. Markets, and resources to improve MapQuest local maps to drive traffic to local content, among other things. Last week, AOL announced an additional $10 million contribution to its investment fund for local initiatives.