During MIX ‘08, WeatherBug was presented as a featured application using Microsoft’s Silverlight technology. The Silverlight powered WeatherBug application was given a full round of applause as it actually showed snow falling onto the Silverlight application during the course of the Silverlight presentation.

The new Silverlight based WeatherBug application is to be available for use with select Nokia brand mobile phones. Should anyone wish to try out the application today for themselves, WeatherBug has provided this Silverlight demo located at this web address. Silverlight has opened up new creative doors for application developers as it allows an entirely new level of interactivity for the end user. Bundle this with critical real time data such as WeatherBug’s live weather data stream, and you end up with a very compelling push forward in credible development.

As you can see from this recent WeatherBug interview, the verdict is that Silverlight is enabling companies such as WeatherBug to take important real life applications such as providing live, local weather to mobile users, then creating an entirely new way to interact with the application itself. WeatherBug is very happy with their Silverlight development.

Here soon, you will be able to try this and other Silverlight applications out for yourselves with the Nokia S60, Series 40 devices and Nokia Internet Tablets once Silverlight is made available for the Symbian platform. Until then, I would suggest trying out the latest Beta version of the WeatherBug Silverlight application. While it may be a bit difficult to do it justice with words, I can tell you that you have not likely tried anything like this before!

Sharp’s new AQUOS LCD TVs have opened up of minds and hearts of the most die-hard TV enthusiast by providing instant access to important local weather information via a new partnership with WeatherBug. The AQUOS LCD TV will also provide users with stock quotes and local traffic data over the new Sharp content network known as AQUOS Net.

Highlighting how WeatherBug is working with Sharp to bring TV sets further into the 21st century was discussed during a press conference held at CES 2008, in Las Vegas. Important points touched on during the event included the desire to bring forth dynamic, personalized content that provided new added value at the already impressive progression in LCD television sets. And as CES attendees discovered, receiving live, local weather data in widget format is definitely progress. WeatherBug’s AQUOS widget will also allow AQUOS owners to customize their daily weather feed for local daily/weekly weather forecasts, live camera images, Doppler radar and of course, severe weather alerts.

Other notable participants in the new Sharp Net content portal include NBC Sports, NASDAQ and Traffic.com.

Dateline, September, 2007. WeatherBug and Verizon announced a partnership that changes the way mobile users stay informed with the latest weather forecasts and critical weather updates as severe weather systems move in. Verizon is now using their V Cast technology to provide subscribers with a region by region outlook of the latest weather conditions, while continuing to make sure that hourly updates are made available throughout the day.

To access V CAST from your Verizon mobile phone:

* Select the “Menu” button
* Scroll left to the “Get It Now” tab of the top navigation
* Select either the “Picture & Video” or the
“Get PIX & FLIX” option
* Select the “V CAST Video” option
* The “V CAST” Home page will display
* Select the “News” category
* Select the “Weather” category
* Select “WeatherBug” and the main menu will display

This agreement with Verizon only goes to further illustrate the importance of live, local weather, delivered to WeatherBug users in the format that you want it the most.

Those of you who are not currently subscribing to Verizon’s V Cast service can still enjoy access to the largest privately owned weather station network in the US. Just follow this link and utilize one of the number of options that match your current mobile carrier.

Staying on top of the latest severe weather is critical, especially when considering the impact it can have on live football game. To respond to this need, WeatherBug is providing NFL game officials on the field with real-time weather data as it happens via Sprint Nextel. Alerts provided by WeatherBug to NFL officials will include the heat index, lightning detection warnings, sudden wind gusts, along with NWS weather warnings.

So how does it work? The WeatherBug application running on the phone will report its location via Location based services (GPS) of the cell phone. WeatherBug receives the data from thousands of their own proprietary weather stations. This live information is then used to alert NFL referees of any severe weather threats that are in their proximity.

Understanding that the weather can do much more than merely rain out a game, is key to respecting the technology behind this in-game weather alert system. Preventing heat stroke, lightning deaths, among other incidents is always on the minds of those on the field and off.

Thankfully, WeatherBug and Sprint Nextel are able to empower game officials to make better judgments calls as they relate to severe weather as it happens, rather than waiting for delayed information from other sources.

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On August 15th, 2007, WeatherBug, JRI and the Canadian Wheat Board teamed up to create the WeatherBug Canadian Network. Working with a number of partners, WeatherBug is planning more than 600+ weather stations in operation throughout Western Canada’s farms, schools and businesses help to provide the country’s consumers and businesses with the latest critical weather data. This new weather network is a real milestone as it allows the Canadian agricultural industry to keep up on the dynamic North American weather, ensuring that the weather data received is both timely and accurate.

To check this out for yourself, simply head on over to Maps.Weatherbug.com. Then set the page to hybrid mode, zoom in on either Winnipeg or Saskatoon and check out the weather stations for yourself! Just remember to roll the mouse over each weather station, as clicking on them in Firefox will not bring any data up. If you would like to check out the Canadian weather in a more traditional sense, just head on over to http://Weather.ca.WeatherBug.com/ for the latest Canadian weather.

I find it rewarding when reading a rave review like this. It’s great to see Google admiring the fantastic work our developers have done with WeatherBug Mapplets for Google Maps. And just when I thought it couldn’t get any better - Google includes WeatherBug in a Google created video highlighting the latest features being offered by Google Maps.

I think it just goes to prove that when applied in new, clever formats, WeatherBug data can offer much more than local weather conditions. WeatherBug can also help you plan for traveling as well, much like we see demonstrated below.