New Potential for Location-Based Applications with iOS 4

Apple's new iOS 4 mobile operating system could open up new possibilities in location-based social networking. The new system allows third party applications to run in the background of the iPhone, including location tracking applications. This creates the potential for new features on networks such as Foursquare, where the location tracking could be used to automatically check-in or check-out of venues. (Although this also opens the door to a range of privacy issues...) The ability of Foursquare to provide useful user features utilizing this new capability will be important in the network's continued growth in order to fend off competition from sites such as Yelp, Gowalla, or other new location-based start-ups.