3. Location based information

Name of the driving force:
Location based information

What:
Location based information, once only useful for mobile systems, appears to be shifting towards the desktop computer. Location based information is a push or pull system used to add value to information by combining location characteristics to it. For example when walking next to a supermarket, an advertisement will pop-up at the screen, with the products in 50% discount sales (push information). Another example is when a pop-up appears at the screen with the message that you are on the wrong track because of a train delay and change in the tracks (pull information). Location based information seems to be attracting social networks like Twitter. An example is TwitterWhere which allows you to generate a feed that will provide you with the Tweets around a given geographic area. This of course questions the global character driving force of social networks which is supported by browsers, and the fact that with more and more growing location based mobile applications the browser is going to be left behind by Millennial users that are interested in location based information.

Enablers:
The enablers of location based information and systems are a variant network of commercial companies, content providers, universities and government (infrastructure). Another big enabler has been the US department of Defence with its GPS system. Google Maps and Tom Tom Navigation have been the biggest enablers in commercial use so far.

Inhibitors:
Because we are dealing with a new technology, it is obvious that it will stop getting support in financial terms and cooperation from the commercial companies. Because there is yet no proven business model for the technology, it is hard to find investors. Another point of inhibition is the choice of technology. For example, there is the more independent Galileo system or the US army GPS system. However, Galileo is dealing with a project delay.

Experts:
There are no specific experts. TU-Delft Professor Rudi Westerveld has however done a project within the university campus of with real demonstrations.

Timing:
Present – various telecom operators introducing location based services – Geo app’s 2001 – DoCoMo (Japan) 1995 – GPS (US)

Web resources:
- http://mashable.com/2007/10/25/twitter-location-based-feeds-twitterwhere/
- http://www.miesonumts.nl/
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Location-based_service