More location-based-services Stories

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location

If you use a location-based service like Foursquare, you are a member of a tiny minority, according to a new report from the Pew Research Center, which found that less than 5 percent of online adults use such services. Can Facebook make location go mainstream? Read more »

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flysmart-featured

The free FLYsmart app arrives on Android devices today, offering air travelers flight tracking, gate information and airport maps with support for indoor location. Software that helps navigate inside facilities isn’t new, but as FLYsmart demonstrates, location plus other contextual services will trump navigation-only mobile apps. Read more »

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SCVNGR, a location-based gaming service, has tallied 500,000 users since rolling out consumer apps in May. Now the service is relaunching its iPhone and Android apps, with improvements aimed at heightening the game play and social aspects of its service. Read more »

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For third-quarter social media and real-time technologies, most of the action was in consumer services, and much of it — from social gaming to location-based services and advertising dollars — was influenced by Facebook. Here is a brief look back at the NewNet action highlights from last quarter. Read more »

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There’s been a flurry of activity lately in local mobile advertising, which is often called the Holy Grail of marketing. Players like Google and Facebook have an edge thanks to their sheer size, but smaller players will have a place at the table if they keep ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »

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location

Location-based shopping services (LBS) have made many headlines recently, and studies have shown that users actually like receiving ads and offers well-targeted to their interests. Couple that with an influx of Tier 1 venture capital and the show-stopping Facebook Places, with which several startups have already joined forces, and it’s no wonder LBS is suddenly such a hot topic in the mobile sector. That doesn’t necessarily mean LBS shopping apps will be easy to implement. A number of challenges — privacy concerns, scaling issues and check-in integrity among them — provide a potential barrier to widespread adoption. This note examines both the drivers and inhibitors for making location-based shopping services a mainstream phenomenon, and includes focused profiles of Facebook, Twitter, Google, Loopt, Foursquare, BrightKite, Whrrl, Gowalla, Plancast, Groupon, AisleBuyer, Bizness Apps, Offeretti, ShopAlerts, Shopkick, Bakodo, Stickybits, Yelp!, Geodelic Sherpa, WHERE, MyTown, InCrowd, SCVNGR, Waze and Layar. Read more at GigaOM Pro »

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ONMYWAY

Navigation service TeleNav has introduced the OnMyWay app today for the iPhone and Android platforms. OnMyWay sends email alerts notifying folks when you are getting close to arriving for a meeting. More importantly, the app will automatically send alerts when you are running late. Read more »

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Foodspotting, a startup that allows users to share photos of their favorite dishes with friends and other food-lovers, has landed a $750,000 seed round from a series of investors led by Aydin Senkut and Dave McClure’s 500 Startups fund, as well as Google executive Steve Lee. Read more »

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Camino 1.5: Brisk, Better, Best

As Facebook tries to take the idea of location-based services mainstream with the launch of Places, other services are looking to add value by using location data to make recommendations for users. Two startups who have their eye on this prize are The Hotlist and Hunch. Read more »

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Waze today launches version 2.0 of its social-based navigation and mapping application, adding a number of small changes and one big feature. The new Waze Groups allows users to create small groups that can easily share traffic information and track the location of group members. Read more »

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According to a recent survey, fewer than 5 percent of U.S. online users have ever used a location-based application such as Foursquare on a mobile device. And almost 85 percent of those who responded to the survey said that they were not familiar with location-based services. Read more »

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Foursquare is in talks with Google, Yahoo and Microsoft about deals involving the service’s location-based checkin data, CEO Dennis Crowley told The Telegraph. None of the search providers have confirmed this, but such deals would make sense given their interest in making their results more real-time. Read more »

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Not sure if you should Foursquare, Gowalla or Brightkite to post your location? A recent survey from uTest ought to help you make that decision, and the results provide useful information for developers in this space, showing that location-based services haven’t changed with the times. Read more »

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Google, Nokia, Microsoft and others are all fighting for outdoor navigation prominence, but what about indoors? Aren’t there opportunities for consumers who want locations and indoor directories? One company thinks so and it provides navigation in malls and airports, with more venues to follow soon. Read more »

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Location, one of the hottest segments in mobile, is a key component not just in navigation apps but also social offerings such as Foursquare, Google Buzz and even Twitter. There’s plenty of opportunity in mobile location. And there will be for quite some time. Read more »

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Location is a nascent space with plenty of wrinkles to iron out, including thorny privacy concerns and less-than-pinpoint positioning technologies. But there are plenty of opportunity in location, and there will be for quite some ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »

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The investment into the next generation of location and augmented reality applications is as big as the buzz around them. Novel and clever applications are appearing that connect the applications environment into the vast pool of content on the web. While we see amazing apps and ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »

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runkeeper-android

Timed perfectly with the Boston Marathon is today’s launch of RunKeeper for Android. I use this app to track my workouts and have them automatically mapped online for a training history. There’s even a live broadcast feature so friends and family can “watch” you move. Read more »

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Want to share your location and progress while you’re en route to meeting with your friends? Check out Glympse, which just added Facebook support to its iPhone and Android apps, which now means people expecting you can track you via Twitter, SMS, email and Facebook. Read more »

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The sixth edition of O’Reilly Media’s annual Where 2.0 conference wrapped yesterday, possibly the most exciting edition to date due to the the realization that we need to build services that let people manipulate their world, not just learn about it. Read more »

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From a comparison of auto and PC industries to problems associated with the location-based advertising to tips & tricks of reading startup term sheets — here is a selection of five articles to read. And after you are done, check out Hitchhiker’s guide to financial regulation. Read more »

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In California, an effort to reduce carbon emissions came into conflict with the function of certain electronic devices — and the state’s Air Resources Board (ARB) has come down in favor of the electronics. ARB announced Thursday that the so-called Cool Cars rulemaking will now “cease.” Read more »

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GPS has become a standard feature on smartphones and is a key component of location-based apps that have gained tremendous popularity recently. The technology is trickling down into lower-end phones, which means the market for location apps is about to grow in a big way. Read more »

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Google has started to put ads on Google Maps in Australia. When you zoom in on the map, you see logos for local businesses and their locations. Google is making sure that despite being “branding” ads, the messages are contextual and relevant. Read more »

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The popular mobile search and recommendation application Where today added a web site that enables users to sync information between the phone and PC. It’s a natural move that should provide a more detailed, immersive experience for those accessing the app via the fixed-line web. Read more »

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Vodafone closed its Wayfinder business just 16 months after spending $30 million to acquire the navigational software firm. It’s a clear sign that if U.S. operators want to continue to monetize navigation, they’re going to have to find ways of doing with without charging customers extra. Read more »

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When fan-bois start making rap videos (however amateurish) about something, you know it is hot. Badges Like Us, a new video about FourSquare, the New York-based start-up shows why it is on its way to becoming a mobile phenomenon. Have a fun break this sluggish Friday. Read more »

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It’s clear that location is an opportunity ready for its time, but making technology smarter by knowing where we are is by necessarily a part of a platform, not an end unto itself. Phil Hendrix lays out the space in a new report for GigaOM Pro. Read more »

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Foursquare is working with Zagat, HBO and other high-profile media brands to get a leg up on competitors like Gowalla and Yelp. The partnerships will provide valuable exposure and content as Foursquare tries to differentiate itself in the white-hot location-based social recommendation space. Read more »

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Nokia, which recently launched a new, free version of its Ovi Maps app, may also open it up to outside developers via a more robust API than the one currently available as it looks to extends the app’s capabilities even further. Read more »

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In one of the first marriages of news content and location-based services, the Canadian arm of the free paper Metro International has announced a content deal with Foursquare, the popular mobile location-based service, that will give users the ability to see local news and reviews. Read more »

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Yelp is stepping up its game against Foursquare and Gowalla by adding “check-ins” by users to its reviews. But will be enough? Or will Foursquare and/or Gowalla make for a simpler user experience and therefore a significant competitive threat? Read more »

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In an attempt to ward of competition from the likes of Google, Nokia’s has released new Ovi Maps software for free. With the new Ovi Maps app, Nokia has a chance to become the GPS-of-choice in countries where standalone navigation devices are hard to find. Read more »

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Geodelic, a developer of location-based applications, has launched an iPhone application and signed a major deal with Korea Telecom to provide a special Seoul version of its app. The company is riding the geolocation wave. It eventually wants to open its publishing system to consumers. Read more »

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A patent filed by Qualcomm suggests that location could be tied to a module that you could use with whatever device you want. That means location on your phone, iPod or netbook whenever you bother to insert the module. But apps makers are skeptical. Read more »

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A survey of major mobile app stores shows that nearly 57 percent of paid applications in the Apple App Store have location-based functionality vs. 49 percent in RIM’s BlackBerry App World and 21 percent in Google’s Android Market. Read more »

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As the social web — and increasingly, the geo-aware web — make our lives more public, we are having to (quickly!) figure out how and how not to share the more private parts of our lives online. Facebook last week updated its settings to make certain […] Read more »

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If you follow me on Twitter, then you’re already aware of my obsession with Foursquare, a New York-based service that taps into the narcissistic appeal of being able to post unusual locations such as our office cafeteria, Chatz Cafe, or best recommendations about a place and […] Read more »

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