Foursquare and Location-based Services

In my case study, I had to answer the week's question: what social and economic forces shape communication infrastructure? Location-based services are technologies that track where a user's mobile device is and then personalizes the content they see. When Foursquare combines this service with social media, it gives not only the consumer benefits through rewards and services, but it also gives producers business. This exchange is a cycle that has shaped how we communicate. According to a question about whether I would keep this app since I had downloaded it for this study, I replied that I would not. I would not like to be monitored of my whereabouts so therefore, I really have no influence over the communication infrastructure due to my inactivity.

One of my discussion questions wanted to know what the future holds for location-based services. In a case study I thought was interesting, it stated that libraries are now trying to use the same template as Foursquare by using location-based services to market library services and communicate with their users. (Cuddy and Glassman) This takes the tracking technology from a social level to a more economic level to benefit society with beneficial services.

Source: 

Cuddy, C., & Glassman, N. R. (2010). Location-Based Services: Foursquare and Gowalla, Should      Libraries Play?. Journal Of Electronic Resources In Medical Libraries, 7(4), 336-343.    doi:10.1080/15424065.2010.527254