Internet portal Lycos Inc. launched its mobile initiative today branded as Lycos Mobile, extending the My Lycos personalization platform to Internet-enabled wireless devices.
Wireless application service provider Wysdom Inc. is providing the underlying wireless extension technology to mobilize the Lycos site. In addition, the Lycos Mobile service includes a search engine dedicated to Wireless Application Protocol sites only, called Lycos WAP Search.
The search engine includes a directory of WAP-enabled sites as well as a catalog of more than 150,000 WAP sites. The engine is based on technology from Fast Search and Technology, in which Lycos holds a minority interest.
The company also announced today an agreement with Vicinity Corp. to integrate its BrandFinder and MapBlast! services into the wireless portal. BrandFinder allows users to locate the nearest business selling any given goods or services of their favorite brand, while MapBlast! is a mapping technology for driving and other directions.
Other wireless initiatives include an e-commerce initiative with Infonic, where consumers can buy Lycos-branded wireless phone models from Motorola Inc., Nokia Corp. and L.M. Ericsson. Also, Lycos formed a wireless-specific business incubator called LycosLabs, which today announced its first investment will be in thinkingBytes.com, a wireless application provider for the personal digital assistant market.
