As I see it, some of the advantages to this electronic appraoch are as follows:

* Timely updating of listings, e.g. monthly, weekly, etc. * Expansion of offerings' timeliness based on current events, e.g. Super Bowl pizza delivery ad's, etc.

* Expansion of YP advertising media types, e.g. including video (TV ad's), audio (radio ad's), text and pictures (paper YP) * Easy language translation of YP keywords, e.g. for use in hotels and minority communities. * Dynamic listing prioritization based on fees, e.g. "Z'" could easily come before "AA". * Targeted pop-up ad's, in addition to YP listings that assist the user to make a decision - similar in concept to ad's stuck onto the front of a number of published YP books. * Integrated, timely, directory listing coupons * Easy aggregation of listings into categories, e.g. creating categories such as "Moving House", "Children's Entertainment", etc. * Updates via the Internet * Embedded multi-media YP is independent of ISP connection speed, i.e. as responsive for narrowband as it is equally for broadband ISP connection. * YP availability and use is independent of phone-line and ISP connection, i.e. no connection is needed to lookup info.

* Small footprint for the user - one stop shopping, i.e. the YP is always co-located with any new phone

Why not just phone up a directory provider?

This could be done pretty cheaply, using the same technology and form factor that manufacturers use on those $5 electronic dictionaries. However, you would get some usability issues, such as not being able to browse through listings when you're unsure of a spelling.

My phone already has yellow pages, mapquest, and movie listings at the click of a button. Excellent idea, whoever came up with it!

In reply to the posted comments:

1) Calling directory assistance costs $$ - both for the company and the subscriber, with fees increasing.

2) Spelling, etc. is a similar problem if you use an operator or going online to a web site. In part it could be alleviated by search technology.

3) Phone already has YP, movies, etc. - but you need to connect to a remote site. These services aren't available offline, in your hand as today's printed YP is.

The proposed embedded YP is stored in your phone. Hence to use it, you don't need to connect to the network. Updates to it come via the network, but not when during its usage times.

I propose that intially this product intially be limited to wireline phones , i.e. counter-top phones.

Some interesting related articles - from both a business' and a consumer's perspectives:

1) "The Good Book", Fortune (06/23/03) - "The red-hot commodity for the Information Age? Why, that would be the Yellow Pages."

2) "Numbers Game", Forbes (09/9/99) - $3.6 Billion a year in directory assistance fees, i.e. what you and I pay for this service.

3) "Directory assistance charges are rising", The New York Times (05/23/01) - "long-distance ... to as much as $1.25 a request"

Now a little lateral thinking: Once you've an "intelligent" counter-top phone, what else can you do? For starters, how about the following:

1) Internet access, without having to learn/use a PC (especially for seniors). The majority of people use a PC at home primarily for email and web browsing. PCs are too complicated- it's like delivering the US mail in a sports car!

2) One device for all of your personal communications - email, IM, web browsing, voice calls, faxing, etc. I'd venture that there are more phones in US homes and businesses than any other consumer electronics devices, including the PC.

3) How about text menus for touch-tone menus, i.e. "press 0 for the operator", etc.