The acquisitions of Patch and Going, announced on Thursday, are the start of a trend at AOL toward investing in and focusing on local services, the company said.

Patch, based in New York City, provides community-specific news and other information about five towns in New Jersey. AOL CEO Tim Armstrong's private investment company, Polar Capital Group, is an investor in Patch.

Patch combines content written for the site by local journalists with items contributed by anyone in the community.

Going, a Boston company, offers users details about concerts and other social events. It's available for 30 cities in the U.S.

AOL did not disclose terms of the deals.