Rand McNally Launches 'Explore America' Application for iPhone®

Users Receive a Virtual Daily Adventure, Access Editorial Content, and Provide Community Commentary

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Sep 29, 2010, 09:00 ET

SKOKIE, Ill., Sept. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Rand McNally – the consummate expert on North American travel – has launched a new iPhone® app designed to make every day a new adventure. The free "Explore America" application provides snippets of unique travel content, photos and videos, destination information, a daily quiz, and more.

To view the multimedia assets associated with this release, please click: http://multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/randmcnally/45955/

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100929/MM60977 )

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100929/MM60977 )

"This is a fun app that also happens to be very useful," explained Dave Muscatel, CEO of Rand McNally. "Rand McNally has been a trusted source of information for travelers for more than 150 years. Now travelers can get that informative and timely content – plus a host of other activities – on their iPhone®s."

Once "Explore America" is downloaded, users will receive a Daily Adventure, which includes a description of an intriguing place in North America, a locator map, and up to five photos showing the location and things about the area. Users can further delve into the adventure by accessing exclusive Rand McNally editorial content and sharing ratings, photos, and content with their preferred social networks. While adventures are revealed daily, all previously displayed adventures or destination information can be viewed at any time.

Also as part of the adventure, users are invited to take a daily travel quiz. Answers to the daily quizzes are scored, timed and posted to a leaderboard.

For those travelers who are ready to jump out of the armchair and hit the road, they may input a trip request through the app to the Tripology service. The free service links would-be travelers with expert travel specialists, called Tripologists, who can help plan and book a trip.

"This is just the first of many mobile applications to come," said John T. Peters, Rand McNally's VP/GM of Digital Strategy & Travel "Whether you are just looking for a daily virtual escape or planning a real trip, Explore America is a free, entertaining iPhone app anyone will enjoy."

The application is downloadable from the app store (http://itunes.com/apps/randmcnally/exploreamerica).

About Rand McNally – Rand McNally is the most trusted source for maps, directions, and travel content. Rand McNally's products and services include: Interactive travel service, Tripology; America's #1 Road Atlas; IntelliRoute® truck routing software and GPS devices; and the leading geography-based educational resources for the classroom. Consumers, businesses, truckers, and educators depend upon Rand McNally to help navigate today's world. www.RandMcNally.com

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SOURCE Rand McNally