In the wake of officially closing its second venture capital round of $1.2M, Pirq, a platform that delivers instant deals and rewards at local businesses entirely through a consumer's mobile phone, announced today that its newly updated mobile app is now available for public download. The updated Pirq app includes several new features such as digital punch cards for consumers to earn rewards, as well as new vertical categories beyond restaurants. Pirq has also added a patent-pending SMS text message component so that all consumers with any type of mobile phone can accumulate loyalty punches and earn rewards via sending a simple text message.

"This is an extremely exciting time for us," said James Sun, CEO of Pirq. "Not only have we successfully closed our second round of funding with Rally Capital, bringing our total funding to $3.2M, but we've launched a new, innovative product for both businesses and consumers that we're very proud of. Pirq 2.0 enables consumers to easily manage all of their punch cards through one smartphone app, in addition to receiving great local rewards and deals. The more consumers use our service, the more rewards they receive. At the same time, our new SmartYield(TM) program provides substantial value to merchants through a fully-measurable program that boosts customer loyalty, increases the frequency of existing customer visits, and adds new customers during off-peak hours."

The newly updated Pirq app is available for both Android and iPhone users, and remains free for consumers to download and use. After downloading the app, Pirq users have the option to search for participating merchants in four new categories: beauty, retail, service, and recreation, in addition to restaurants. When a consumer arrives at the desired venue, they simply scan the Microsoft Tag with their smartphone to either accumulate a loyalty punch or redeem a Pirq deal. Non-smartphone users will also be able to accumulate loyalty punches and earn rewards by sending an SMS text message. Both the Microsoft Tag and unique SMS codes will appear on a new digital tablet provided by Pirq to the merchant.

Many new merchants in the Silicon Valley and Seattle area are already offering Pirq's digital punch card feature including Metamorphosis Salon in San Jose, Aurora's Massage Therapy in Santa Clara, Rock Star Tan Bar in Bothell, Extreme Pita in Kent and Bothell, and Dairy Queen in Edmonds. "We're very excited to be participating in Pirq's new SmartYield(TM) program," said Rahil Karmali, owner of both Extreme Pita in Bothell and Dairy Queen in Edmonds. "With the addition of the digital punch card, we're able to track our loyal customers more easily, and use this data to better reward our best patrons. Pirq is also very convenient for our customers since they no longer need to clutter their wallet with paper or plastic punch cards."

About Pirq:

Pirq is a free smartphone app that provides consumers with a convenient, digital way to earn rewards and get instant deals at local businesses. With Pirq, you can easily manage your punch cards and search for nearby deals - all right on your phone! The more you use Pirq's service, the more rewards you receive. At the same time, Pirq's patent-pending SmartYield(TM) program and technology delivers tremendous value to merchants through enhancing customer loyalty, increasing customer frequency, and optimizing off-peak hours to add profit to their bottom line.