ChaCha opens Q&A database APIs to mobile developers

Free mobile answers service ChaCha announced the launch of three Application Programming Interfaces granting developers free access to its database of SMS- and web-based queries and responses. According to ChaCha, the APIs--QuickChaCha Answers (query the API with a specific question, get an answer instantly), TopChaCha Answers (query the API with a general topic or keywords for the most popular answers) and ChaCha Trends (query the API to discover what users are asking about)--enable publishers to customize questions and answers around a given subject and post it in a simple interface, with ChaCha-derived information displaying live on the screen or within an app as selected. ChaCha adds that its database is updated in near real-time, providing up-to-the-minute insight into what is on the minds of consumers--the firm currently delivers over 50 million impressions each month to more than 2.2 million mobile users.

The ChaCha APIs complement the firm's recent applications for platforms including iPhone, Facebook and Twitter.  Additional details on the APIs are here. In an effort to foster developer innovation, ChaCha also will introduce a new six-week contest promising cash prizes to the most creative and user-friendly applications based on the APIs--the top winner will earn $10,000, with $5,000 going to second place and $2,000 going to third place.  

For more on the ChaCha APIs:
- read this release

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