A regional daily newspaper has launched a free iPhone App as part of its coverage of the World Cup.

The Northern Echo has sent its chief sports writer Scott Wilson to South Africa for the tournament, which starts today with a match between the host country and Mexico.

And his reports and Twitter feed will form part of the App’s content, which can be downloaded from iTunes by searching for ‘Northern Echo Tournament Tracker’.

It also features live scores, latest team news, group tables, fixture lists and the latest news from the England camp.

Editor Peter Barron said: “The working party has done a cracking job in producing our first iPhone App.

“It’s a proud first step in a new direction for The Northern Echo and we’re all excited to see how it goes.

“We wanted our first App to be free so that we could assess what was involved but it is sponsored and we will be looking to follow it up with more Apps in the near future.”

Scott will also be reporting from South Africa for other Newsquest titles and broadcasting for Tyne Tees Television and Real Radio.

Meanwhile, the independently-owned Rotherham Advertiser believes it could be the first in the UK to launch a births, marriages and deaths App.

The newspaper has started the service so readers can search all the BMD announcements from the previous two months and archive their favourites.

They can also post comments, upload photos or share the announcement with friends through email, Facebook and Twitter.

Commercial director Nicky Holt said: “We are the first in the UK to launch an App for the BMD section, allowing us to extend our brand to a new non-traditional newspaper audience.

“We are a traditional weekly newspaper group, but that has not prevented us from identifying opportunities in new media and technology to capitalise on a key pillar of a traditional printed product.”