Local Matters, a new company providing home directory publishers, mobile and directory assistance service providers with tech solutions in local search (formed by the merger of three companies: Aptas, ISx and YP Solutions) has raised $15 million in first round of funding.

As this Rocky Mountain News story says, Local Matters and its CEO - MapQuest founder Perry Evans - are hoping to cash in on the next frontier of Internet search technology: local search.

Companies such as phone book publisher Dex Media, SBC and others are expected to deploy Local Matters’ technology on their own Web sites and under their own brand names.