There's no shortage of Internet companies looking to offer online coupons for local merchants, from giants such as Groupon and LivingSocial to well-funded upstarts like Seattle's DealPop and Tippr. Just today, AOL made its move in the online coupon arena with the launch of Wow.com -- an offering that Mashable quickly dubbed a Groupon clone.

There's certainly money to be made with all these "daily deal" sites, one of the reasons why so many are chasing the dollars. Now, the publisher of MyBallard, Magnolia Voice, Wedgwood View and other neighborhood news blogs is getting in on the action with a new site called North Seattle Guide. The site showcases businesses, events and news from the Next Door Media hyperlocal blogging network. But the centerpiece is a new coupon service which allows Next Door Media's sponsors to post discounts on everything from home remodeling to spa treatments to pet care.

Next Door Media co-founder Cory Bergman admits that the North Seattle Guide is a competitive response to companies like Groupon, which have been attempting to poach the company's stable of advertisers.

But Bergman, who in addition to running Next Door Media serves as director of new product development at msnbc.com, says that the coupons on North Seattle Guide are different.

"This is a big departure from many other sites, which keep a big cut of the revenue and (send) it to their corporate offices in Chicago, San Francisco or New York," Bergman writes in a blog post announcing the new site.

Currently, Next Door Media is offering coupons from local merchants such as New Roots Organics, Bop Street Records, Fetch Pet Care and more than half a dozen other sponsors. Users can access the deals via an email newsletter or by following along on Twitter or Facebook.

Next Door Media does have an advantage in that its readers are mostly made up of people who actually live in the communities where the merchants are located. But the idea with the North Seattle Guide is to create an even more robust experience that could attract people from outside those communities.

"We believe North Seattle Guide is the first regional site in the country that ties together a network of neighborhood blogs without stealing their thunder," Bergman writes. "It attracts a new audience that may not live in the region — but wants to visit or move to North Seattle — and it helps drive new value for our advertisers in a competitive advertising landscape."