About the acquisition of Upcoming.org by Yahoo, News.com says:
Yahoo plans to keep the social-events calendar site separate, but also plans to eventually use the site’s content to enhance Yahoo search capabilities, according to the Associated Press, which first reported the acquisition.
Yahoo, Google and America Online are locked in a fierce battle for people interested in local content, as the companies launch tools for local search, expanded mapping capabilities and local business reviews.
Currently events have been treated as less important to objects. There are good reasons, however, that we will see increasing emphasis on events.