Spatial Networking
         Michael Metcalf
Product Management, User Location
     Yahoo! Geo Technologies
What I’ll talk about…


 +
Spatial Networking?
Spatial Networking enables real-
time collaboration and
communication with those in your
immediate vicinity, even if you
don’t know them.
Technology!
In Q2 2010, 19% of Mobile Devices Sold
          Worldwide were Smart

                     6%
                                  Android &
 Other         13%                iPhone OS
 Smart
Phones

                     81%


                                          Feature


                                  Bloomberg 8.12.10
…but Growing Fast


+50 %
           +32 %
  # of
 Smart-
             % of
 phones
              All
            Mobile
            phones


Q2 2009 – Q2 2010
                     Bloomberg 8.12.10
By 2011, 80% of Mobile Devices
         will have GPS




            80%


                           iSuppli 7.19.10
In 2015…
700-800 million smartphones will be sold
worldwide
5 billion people on earth over age 15

~2 billion of whom will have a smartphone
purchased in the previous 3 years

4200% increase in LBS mobile marketing
                                        IDC 9.10
In other words, we will know
where you are.
Where You Are
Some Definitions…

            Locations You Care About


                Physical Locations


                 Declared Locations

                  Check Ins
Foursquare is adding 1 Des Moines
worth of users per month.
This is Des Moines.
Foursquare Growth




pathawks
According to Foursquare, Des
Moines is very close to The Middle
of Nowhere.
Middle of Nowhere…




RAYGUN Design
Social LBS is hot in 2010, but…
…only 1 in 25 Americans have tried it

…only 1 out of 100 use them weekly

…70% are age 20-35

…80% of users are male

                                        Forrester Research 7.2010
Location Based Services are not
inherently social.
So let’s focus on



               Physical Locations
fensterbme
Photography



                       Disco Lover

Vegetarian




       Cyclist
                 Lisergia, Mpozzobon, gruesome
mapmeet
kordite
donut2d
Roadside America
webwalker
SF CycleTracks
shopkick
+
Time + Place
  = Location History
Google Latitude
PlaceTrack
6,000
= the number of LBS apps available
on iPhone.




                             iSuppli 7.19.10
Location History, a Personal Utility
Social Location History
        Sept 29, 2004
1   Maintaining a personal
    location history service will be
    a mainstream utility.
Psychographics of Place
The best companies will use location
history to learn more about how our
movements, behaviors, and
preferences imprint the space around
us.
• Tourist
            • Local
            • Either
walkingsf
Sportacular Check In
mapmeet
mapmeet
mapmeet
sfagogo
dphiffer
Exit Strategy NYC
Photographer



                  Disco Lover

Vegetarian




       Cyclist
Vegetarians

                        Disco-
                        Disco -ers
Cyclists



  VW Spider Sculpture
  Enthusiasts
2   As we move through space, we
    define places with our
    behaviors and preferences.

    In turn, every place is imprinted
    with our psychographics.
If the places we go reflect our
interests…
…then we often have something
in common with those in our
immediate proximity.
Those Nearby
Who is Near You Right Now…

                     Unknown


                           Known

                  Unknown Known
               (Can’t remember their name)




                               (Me)
get a different
  HELP?                    perspective


            Local
            INFO
                                   Build
            Transit
                                  Critical
            tips
                                  Mass
communicate
     uncover what you can’t see
HELP?
You people should talk.
Build
Critical
Mass
vermininc
Slugs & Casual Carpools
prasenberg
communicate
        uncover what you can’t see
LoveGetty
hyperbolation
shehan
MessageParty
Qilroy
LoKast
Nokia Instant Communicator
Apple iGroups?
Local
INFO
Transit
tips
articnomad
BlockChalk
Foursquare Tips
mvjantzen
wctc
mr_t_in_dc
sp8254
Where’s My %$#@ Umbrella?




        Where’s My %$#@
          Umbrella?!
get a different
 perspective
Water
                                buffalo.




                 What’s going
                 on up ahead?




almostinfamous
rickyromero
MouseWait
dawilson   dey
Flash Mobs




gdudg
3   You probably have something
    in common with those around
    you.
Spatial Privacy
Learning from
(Location) History
Flavors of Spatial Privacy

    Avoid
                     Obscure

     Check Out
Privacy
Avoid
   Aggregate

   Personal
visualthinker
Privacy
Obscure
     Aggregate

     Personal
Facebook Places
Neer
Location Labs
Privacy
Check Out
biggreymare
4   Privacy is a core feature of Spatial
    Networking.
In Summary…
1   Maintaining a personal location history service
    will become a mainstream utility.

    As we move through space, we define places with
2   our behaviors and preferences. Every place is
    imprinted with our psychographics.

3   You probably have something in common with
    those around you.

4   Privacy is a core feature of Spatial Networking.
Thanks!
Contact


Twitter Geocalf
Yahoo! metcalf@yahoo-inc.com
LinkedIn linkedin.com/in/michaellmetcalf

Michael metcalf