Expanding its reach into the hyperlocal news, Google has introduced a new app named "Bulletin" that allows anybody to submit stories for and about their communities.

"This is a free, lightweight app for telling a story by capturing photos, video clips and text right from your phone, published straight to the web (without having to create a blog or a website)," Google said in a statement late on Friday.

"The app is made for contributing hyperlocal stories about your community, for your community, right from your phone. 'Bulletin' makes it effortless to put a spotlight on inspiring stories that aren't being told," the tech giant added.

The application has been launched as a limited pilot project and is available in Nashville, Tennessee and Oakland, California.

Interested users in these areas can sign up to be an early access user for the programme.