Zvents announced that it will be collaborating with Microsoft to enhance the events experience on MSN City Guides. Through the collaboration, Zvents’ platform will bring new capabilities to MSN users looking for interesting things to do in their immediate vicinity, enabling local merchants to promote themselves to interested consumers.

Microsoft selected Zvents to power the Events, Venues and Performers platforms for MSN City Guides, because the Zvents Media Platform infuses MSN City Guides with new character and capabilities for identifying and delivering information about local things to do. Zvents partners with hundreds of media channels to distinguish the local search experience with verve and detail what’s currently happening in any locale. The broad scope of the Zvents Media Platform is enriched with highly targeted advertising that relates specifically to an individual’s search for things to do. Local advertisers can deliver specific information to audiences looking for promotions, event, and business listings that relate to unique interests and searches. Hundreds of millions of MSN users now have immediate access to the things they want to do, details about places to go, and people to see in their communities, cities nearby or travel destinations.

“Our goal is to deliver an incomparable local event experience to MSN users,” said Manu Vij, Channel Manager for the MSN Local group at Microsoft. “With Zvents, our users can now quickly and easily find any event happening in their local area — whether a hot rod car show, concert in the park, back-to-school sale, or celebrity book signing — virtually whatever suits their interests is presented in detail and immediately accessible.”

Zvents actively aggregates event information and local content allowing MSN City Guide users to conduct comprehensive local “what, when, and where” searches for millions of events, time-based promotions, venues, performers, and other local activities using natural search queries. Users can search and find relevant local events or venues, including dates and time, ticket prices, descriptions, weather, venue information, ratings, and mapped locations using Microsoft Virtual Earth, as well as contribute their own content through reviews, comments, photos, and related links. Content is provided by Zvents’ more than 250 media partners, through web crawlers, and user-generated content, delivered in detailed, Federated or Blended Local Search results.

“Together with MSN, we’re now able to provide millions of people with the most complete and robust index of local content, ” said Ethan Stock, Zvents CEO and founder. “As a part of the Zvents network, MSN adds tremendous value to local advertisers trying to both broaden their reach and more precisely target customers with timely information across the web.”

For more information on Zvents contact Naz Ekim, naz@gutenbergpr.com at Gutenberg Communications.