Centerd Archive

A new local search and social networking site is later launching today called Center’d. They are calling the launch a "first draft" which is another term for beta. The company describes themselves as, "the only site on the Web that provides an integrated way to manage all the core elements of local planning: picking a place, agreeing on a time, selecting service providers, sending invites, managing volunteers, hosting and communicating."

In all of the materials the company provided, I didn’t see any mention of mobile. Local event planning and search without mobile I see as a mistake.

Center’d has several main content areas. First is a social network that lets you see what places in your local search request are favorites of your friends. You can also create maps that overlay your friend’s locations to create an intense social graph. Second is aggregated reviews from around the Web on local locations. You can also create an event from a search – this could be pretty useful. There’s also a polling tool to find out when your friend’s are available which seems very similar to what Renkoo provides.

Nothing itself seems that innovative but combining everything together might make Center’d more useful than the parts individually. The company is headed by former executives from Yahoo and Microsoft, and backed by Norwest Venture Partners, KeyNote Ventures and private investors.

MyPunchbowl is also in the full-circle event planning business.

Update: VentureBeat has a good review of Center’d.