Zagat has announced the availability of its popular restaurants and nightlife survey for Pocket PC devices.

Users will be able to access reviews of 18,000 restaurants and 1,800 nightspots with Zagat To Go, developed for the company by Wireless Knowledge. The guide covers 30 cities, including most major destinations in the US and several international centres such as London and Tokyo. Entries can be searched by location, cuisine and ratings. Zagat content is also available to users of BREW handhelds. Wireless Knowledge is developing a Palm OS version for the company, which will be introduced shortly.

“Zagat is committed to providing our content to our consumers wherever they are, and on whatever platform they choose,” said Nina Zagat, co-Chair of Zagat Survey. “Wireless Knowledge is a valuable partner in the continued extension of our brand onto mobile applications.” Eric Schultz, CEO of Wireless Knowledge, Inc, added: “The Zagat To Go application is a prime example of how media and entertainment companies such as Zagat can leverage mobility to extend their brand. The mobile version of Zagat To Go on Pocket PC illustrates how companies can accomplish their goals through leading-edge solutions.”

Insight

Zagat has led the way in delivering its content to mobile users. It will now be available to almost all handheld computer users and a large number of mobile subscribers through the BREW application. This is a new departure for Wireless Knowledge, which has previously stuck to selling its enterprise mobility products, but now appears to be branching out into custom development. Its acquisition of Mobilocity now starts to make even more sense. The loser here will be Palm OS developer Landware, which has developed a Zagat application for Palm OS, but now looks like being upstaged by the new Wireless Knowledge version.