Quova, Inc., the leading provider of Internet geolocation
services, today announced GeoDirectory Server 6.0, its Internet
Location Intelligence platform, and a Proxy Locator designed to enable
online businesses to more comprehensively determine the geographic
location of their Web visitors. This platform supports real time
deployment of supplemental location techniques extending beyond
Internet Protocol (IP) geolocation and IP intelligence. The first
platform extension, The Proxy Locator, can validate the use of a proxy
server and, in real time, identify the geographic location of the
originating Internet connection.
Why Location Matters on the Internet
In the physical world, virtually every major business decision and
process is affected by geographic considerations. What is the local
language and currency? Where is the transaction occurring and does
this fit the prior patterns of behavior? What geographically-based
regulations apply? Is this product or broadcast licensed in this
geography? The same is true on the Internet, once considered a
borderless medium. Online businesses ranging from e-retailers to
broadcasters to online banks today depend on accurate geographic data
about their Web visitors to prevent fraud, comply with regulations,
deliver digital content, execute local search and advertising
strategies and protect themselves from online attack.
"The ability to physically locate devices receiving live video
content -- in essence, defining boundaries in cyberspace - creates
powerful sales and marketing opportunities for Major League Baseball,"
said Joe Choti, Chief Technology Officer, Major League Baseball
Advanced Media Group. "Quova's data services make it possible to offer
MLB.TV content without infringing on national and local television
broadcasters, and their ability to locate virtually any visitor to my
web site, regardless of approach or device, saves us time and money."
GeoDirectory Server 6.0
GeoDirectory Server 6.0 - Internet Location Intelligence platform
is a Java-based application that sends Quova customers the
geographical location and network connection data for each IP address
accessing their Web site. GeoDirectory Server 6.0 can instantly
identify the type of Internet connection a Web visitor is using and
deploy the most effective technique to locate that device, whether it
is IP geolocation or another real-time locating technique. These new
techniques provide alternative location tools for situations in which
the IP address may not provide sufficient granularity in pinpointing
the Web visitor's location.
The platform can accommodate extensions for additional real time
locating technologies such as WiFi, cellular and GPS, which will
significantly enrich the information that a customer's automated
online decision tools can use to determine whether they will allow,
block or challenge a Web transaction.
Proxy Locator
Quova today also announced the first GeoDirectory Server 6.0
platform extension, the Proxy Locator, which determines if a Web
visitor is accessing a customer's Web site through a proxy server and
thus attempting to mask their true location - an indicator of
potential fraud. Technology acquired in 2006 from Illuminati
Corporation, founded by Stanford University PhD students Michael
Freedman and Martin Casado, enables Quova, in many cases, to see past
the proxy server and locate the originating Internet connection.
"The exponential growth in location-based services would be
impossible without the knowledge of where a Web visitor is located.
Quova has consistently focused on providing the most comprehensive and
accurate methods in this area," said Marie Alexander, Quova CEO.
"Given the increased complexity of methods to access the Internet, we
have expanded our platform and techniques to provide one source for
all Internet Location Intelligence."
IP Geolocation - The Evolution
Launched in 2000, Quova's initial generation of IP geolocation
data services provided customers with the geographic location of the
approximately 1.5 billion IP addresses assigned and allocated on the
Internet. After hundreds of customer implementations and further
research, Quova determined that simply looking at the geographic
location of an IP address was not always enough information to
accurately determine the location of a Web visitor. Quova introduced
the concept of IP Intelligence in which the additional network
characteristics such as connection type, (DSL, Dial-up), routing type
(corporate proxy, mobile gateway, anonymizing proxy) and domain
information associated with the IP addresses were deployed.
Identification and labeling of these proxies and gateways began to
clearly define the next generation of location detection system. Today
Quova introduced the concept of Internet Location Intelligence, whose
rules engine defines the occasion when a real-time locator is needed
to supplement the IP Intelligence data. The first real time extension
to Quova's Internet Location Platform is the Proxy Locator.
Availability
GeoDirectory Server 6.0 will be available in Q3 of 2007 directly
through Quova and indirectly through authorised resellers and
partners. Quova's solution is comprised of data, software and targeted
professional services that Quova has integrated to help its clients
meet their objectives through the use of internet geolocation
information. The solution is priced on a subscription model and
customers pay an annual fee based on the type of use.
About Quova
Quova gives online businesses the ability to determine the
geographic location of their Web visitors. The company offers the most
comprehensive, deeply researched and reliable Internet geolocation
data available today--without compromising individual privacy.
Thousands of online businesses depend on Quova's data and services to
detect and prevent fraud, ensure regulatory compliance, manage digital
content distribution, and localize ads and web content. The company's
customer base includes the top three search engine sites, Major League
Baseball Advanced Media, the BBC, Ladbroke's and Cisco Systems, and
investors include Mobius Venture Partners and IDG. Quova was founded
in 2000 and is based in Mountain View, California.