Podcast: Changing computer interfaces
Social networking is the refrain of almost any online article or news story these days. Most stories concentrate on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn for business, but there is another class of products that are equally important in this area of technology: the location-based services such as Foursquare.
Foursquare is a popular application for the Apple iPhone that basically makes a game of social networking. An article on mashable.com recently outlined several ways in which Foursquare is changing the tech world. This service is turning our interest in social networking into a type of virtual currency. Businesses are rewarding users by giving them products and services as a result of the customers “checking in” at the store or shop.
This process is taking social networking and brand loyalty to new places, as you might imagine. By making showing up an activity in a social game, Foursquare is breaking new ground in what was thought to be an old-hat type of business.
Twitter and Facebook also are interested in developing location-based services, and Twitter in particular has moved in that direction lately. Finally it’s no surprise that Google also is making its presence known here by some recent purchases and acquisitions. It’s going to get interesting, and quickly.