iPad up for grabs at Ireland’s first FourSquare swarm

4 Jun 2010

Geo-location social networkers in Ireland have a chance to get their hands on an iPad a month or more before anybody else if they turn up at the country’s first Foursquare swarm in Dublin City.

Foursquare is one of the most exciting social-networking phenomena to arrive since Facebook or Twitter. It allows its 1.3 million global mobile users to use the GPS function on their mobile devices to “check-in” at venues. They then not only inform their friends where they are via mobile and other social-networking sites online, but they are awarded points and badges and all can vie to become mayor of a particular venue based on frequency.

Facebook is rumoured to be creating its own location-based service.

The company, which was started in New York by Denis Crowley, is being pursued by Yahoo!, which has offered US$125m for the company.

Tonight in Dublin at 6pm in Dakota Lounge, mobile operator Vodafone is helping to organise a mass check-in via Foursquare to help its users unlock the elusive and much-coveted swarm badge.

The virtual swarm badge is only available when more than 50 people simultaneously “check in” to a venue through the Foursquare application. This has never been unlocked in Ireland before and Vodafone is attempting to be the first to do this.

As well as receiving the badge, Vodafone is also offering a free drink to the first 50 people to check in on Foursquare.

There’s also a grand prize draw for all entrants who check in: Vodafone will be giving one lucky attendee a brand new Apple iPad, Vodafone Wireless Hotspot and a year’s contract for mobile broadband.

Foursquare is available as an application on iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, Windows Mobile and Vodafone 360. The Vodafone 360 app is titled WE’RE HERE.

John Kennedy is a journalist who served as editor of Silicon Republic for 17 years

editorial@siliconrepublic.com