Linked In Now Features Company Profiles

LinkedIn has launched 160,000 company and charity profiles as part of an effort to drive traffic and increase the professional network’s value as research tool. Company data will largely be based on information pulled from existing LinkedIn member profiles, but Business Week is chipping in to help fill in the gaps.

Bloggers, even those who are not especially fond on the networking site, are quickly applauding the upgrade, suggesting that the new profiles will be especially useful for job hunters. Analysts also believe that the upgrade will make LinkedIn members more likely to return to the site on a more regular basis.