WeatherCall is a subscription-based service from KIMT (Iowa/Minnesota TV station) based on the U.S. National Weather Service data. It costs $6 dollars per year. Subscribers provide a physical location (address) and receive notification (e-mail, text, phone call) whenever severe weather including tornado warnings are delivered. Subscribers can optionally choose to receive severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings.

The service is enabled by changes in how NWS know tracks storms. It's now done via polygon - meaning those outside the area need not be warned. Messages come from the station's Chief Meteorologist Adam Frederick 24 hours a day. It's not a location-based service in the sense it does not know where you are, save via that single input address. When you travel you can change your location manually within the system.

The company behind the offering (which apparently is apparently available from many TV/radio stations) is Media Weather Innovations.

The name says it all. AdNav refers to itself as a GPS Solutions Marketing Company. The idea is to subsidize satnav distribution by hotels, car rental agencies, airlines and make money by offering ads on the devices to local businesses. The platform is called Boomerang and it allows the partner to customize the data offered. Among the offerings are weather, directions, Internet access, city guides. Among the partners are Tele Atlas, CustomWeather, Ask and others. I didn't see any listing of who's advertising yet.

While very clever, my sense is that regular business travelers will be in the habit (soon) of using their phones for such things. Vacationers are a more likely target, but they'll have to learn of the offering before they pick up the NeverLost enabled car at Hertz.

via SmartCompany (Australia)

GPS devices were one of the big tech sellers this holiday season. More than likely you or a family member or friend gave or received one that's now settled into a single car, or caught in play between two or more vehicles. What might the large number of sales of these devices mean for the growth of location-based services in 2008? Editors Joe Francica and Adena Schutzberg look into the crystal ball.

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I don't ski, so those of you who do can perhaps evaluate the value of the new O’Neill NavJacket. It's a ski jacket with built-in GPS. Audio in the hood provides navigation instructions to lead you down the hill while a screen on the sleeve shows maps. If you hook it up to a cell phone you can get 3D visuals and other resort information. Word is that like most satnav devices you tell it where you want to go (it's not clear how this is done - key in, select from list, input from computer?)

Perhaps they are confused, but the report I read says that in addition to speed and location, the device can provide (apparently on its own) local weather information. I'd think that'd require cell or Interent access, no?

The jacket will be tested this year in the Alps and perhaps be on sale next season.

- pocket-link.co.uk

Gary Price (ResourceShelf) tipped me off to a new GIS internet Map Service for weather. This one comes out of a partnership between the National Weather Service and Penn State. The article provides little information on the nature of the service:

PSIEE Web enables the weather data through the creation of Internet Map Services (IMS) so they are available to anyone with an Internet connection. These map services allow the served data to be easily integrated into a desktop GIS software package via the Internet with just a click of a button. The team also developed viewing capabilities through Google Earth.

However, a PowerPoint referenced in the article, from the ESRI UC this year makes clear the data is available in ArcIMS Image and Feature Services, but if you dig through it seems that it's also accessible via WMS. I believe you can access the services here (the article provides no links, so I'm guessing based on the PPT.)