Farecast, a Seattle-based "airfare prediction" website that caught the attention of prominent bloggers when it launched earlier this year, has expanded its service to 55 U.S. cities. The Seattle Times reports on the move, noting that the company has thus far raised $8.5 million in venture capital and that CEO Hugh Crean "hopes to capitalize on the frustration of finding multiple fares for the same destination one week, only to have them change without warning and seemingly without reason the next."

Now that fuel prices are sending airfares skyrocketing, it would seem the market is ready for Crean's innovation. In June, when the site had first launched but was limited to flights to and from Seattle and Boston, John Battelle wrote: "The basic premise is neat -- Farecast pays attention to the market price of all airline fares out of particular cities.... It then uses this data to help forecast when the right time might be for you to buy your ticket (and get the best price). In short, it's a ripoff detector for flights."

Sounds like an innovation that's more timely than ever.