Nokia gets giggy with it

Nokia's Beta Labs has released "Gig Finder", an application for S60 users that works out where you are and what music is playing locally.

The application runs on 5th-edition devices and provides for searching by genre, artist, venue and so forth - the results being filtered for local venues along with links to purchase tickets as well as buy music (through the Ovi store, naturally) and get directions to the gig (through Nokia Maps, naturally).

Gigs in the USA, UK, Canada and Ireland are currently listed: obviously it's not possible to provide a comprehensive list, but initial reports are that the database is well populated.

We tried the application, but our only 5th-edition handset was so far from civilisation there wasn't anything going on locally. More urban users report the database being rather London-focused - though that accusation could equally be applied to the UK music scene.

The great thing about finding a gig using a Nokia app is that you'll run into fewer iPhone users, though we're not sure that clicking on the Ovi store replaces buying a CD from the boot of the artist's car as part of the gig-going experience. ®