Nominate businesses for the Niantic Local Business Recovery Initiative

Trainers,

We hope you’re all as excited for Pokémon GO Fest 2020 as we are! There’s much to look forward to this summer for everyone in the Pokémon GO community. To help Trainers give back to their communities, we’re excited to announce our upcoming Niantic Local Business Recovery Initiative . Plus, take a look at a recap of some quality-of-life updates that we’ve made to the game over the last few months and how some of these changes will be maintained moving forward.

Niantic Local Business Recovery Initiative

At Niantic, we are passionate about bringing communities together and lifting one another up, through the good times and the challenging times. We understand that many local businesses have experienced unprecedented hardship over the past few months, and we want to help.

We are inviting Pokémon GO players to nominate their favorite small, local businesses to participate in the Niantic Local Business Recovery Initiative. As part of our efforts to assist the economic recovery of local businesses, we are committed to supporting 1,000 nominated businesses by providing them complimentary promotion in Pokémon GO for one year.

The physical locations of these local storefronts will appear as Sponsored PokéStops or Gyms on the Pokémon GO in-game map, and these businesses will have access to additional in-game marketing tools, such as promotion campaigns. By leveraging these features, small businesses can build awareness of their location and product offerings, display geo-targeted messaging and offers to nearby players, and create a more fun and engaging experience for visiting players once it is safe to do so.

This initiative is completely based on nominations, with each player being able to nominate one business, so be sure to pick your favorite! We want to hear from all our players, and we are so excited to support the beloved neighborhood spots where your local community gathers to eat, play, and socialize.

Nominations will be open until Friday, July 31, 2020, at 11:59 p.m. PDT (GMT −7). No purchase necessary. Initially, this initiative will be available in Canada, Great Britain, Japan, Mexico, and the US (subject to the terms available here).

To learn more, be sure to check out the Niantic blog.

Recap of quality-of-life updates

Over the last few months, we’ve made several updates to Pokémon GO to adapt it to individual settings. Here’s a look at how these changes will be maintained for the foreseeable future.

• The distance at which you can spin Photo Discs at Gyms and PokéStops will remain increased.
• Gift storage and the number of Gifts you can open per day will remain increased.
• Remote Raid Passes will remain available.
• The walking requirement to unlock sets of battles in the GO Battle League will return eventually.

And don’t forget—Pokémon GO Fest 2020 is fully virtual! We’re excited to host the first-ever Pokémon GO Fest event that any Trainer worldwide can participate in. Tickets are now available in the in-app shop. Learn more here.

Please be aware of your surroundings and follow guidelines from local health authorities when playing Pokémon GO. Upcoming events are subject to change. Be sure to follow us on social media, opt in to receiving push notifications, and subscribe to our emails to stay updated. For the latest on in-game events and feature updates, be sure to check this help center article.

—The Pokémon GO team