Propertynews.com Launch iPhone Application for Northern Ireland Market

6th January 2010

Propertynews.com, the definitive property portal for Northern Ireland is pleased to announce the release of the first iPhone application for the local property market, allowing users to access thousands of properties for sale or rent anytime anywhere using an iPhone or iPod Touch.

The free app, developed in conjunction with GCD Technologies was approved by Apple on the 21^st December 2009 just in time for Christmas! And its popularity was evidenced by an average of 90 downloads each day over the festive period before the official publicity campaign began.

Key functionality of the Propertynews app includes the ability to locate a house hunter’s exact position using inbuilt GPS technology and plot the location of properties for sale or rent within the immediate area and beyond. Users can also search for property via a keyword or area search or indeed by map with directions right to the front door of their new home.

The app has been designed to afford the user the same high quality search experience as the main Propertynews website and contains full brochure information and property photographs which can be launched via a slideshow feature in full screen mode.  The iphone app also offers immediate access to Estate Agents through a 'Call the Agent' or 'Email the Agent' button and house hunters can also forward properties to their friends or post to social networking sites at the touch of a button

Emma McNally, Managing Director of www.propertynews.com commented: “With almost a fifth of our existing visitors already accessing the website via a mobile device and an increasing number via an iphone handset we were keen to develop a property App specifically for the local marketplace. The app provides a new and innovative way for house hunters to search the largest database of properties for sale or rent in Northern Ireland and offers a state of the art user experience.”

Andrew Gough, Managing Director of GCD Technologies Ltd states that “With over 3 billion Apps downloaded since the App Store launched only 18 months ago, Apple has exceeded all expectations and begun a revolution in the mobile industry. Building a native iPhone App for Propertynews.com has enabled us to make full use of the iPhone's hardware, including GPS, accelerometer and multi-touch capabilities."

In conjunction with the release of the app Propertynews have also upgraded the existing mobile version of their website mobile.propertynews.com  which is due to launch to the public w/c 11^th January.

The Propertynews iPhone app is available for free download from Apple’s App Store on iPhone and iPod touch or at itunes.com/appstore/.