Is Loopt The Next Big Thing In Social Networking?

I haven’t used Loopt.com service since I don’t have Boost Mobile phone, but from reading about the service it seems to have a lot of the elements of the next generation SN I have been talking about. Loopt is a GPS location based mobile social network available to Boost Mobile customers for $2.99 a month. From their website:

“Loopt is a Palo Alto-based startup that has built a revolutionary “social mapping” service to change the way people use mobile phones to keep in touch with their friends. loopt uses GPS (and other location technology) to show you where your friends are by automatically updating maps on your mobile handset. loopt also lets you send messages to nearby friends or receive automatic alerts when they’re nearby so that you never miss an opportunity to meet. With loopt, mobile subscribers put themselves on the map.”

I think this type of technology is the key for the next big social networking application. GPS location tracking opens the door for a huge amount of useful features, especially for the 16-25 crowd, that are not possible with todays online Social Networks.
Mobile social networks have been around for awhile such as Dodgeball.com. But as I have stated before, the key feature that will keep Dodeball and similar services from reaching huge success is that they are text message based and require way too much user interaction. Or in other words, its a pain in the ass to use.

Eventhough I think Loopt has the foundation of a really big application, they still have a lot of hurdles then need to overcome:

1. Partner with more wireless carriers

This is an obvious must. The application is useless unless a good number of your friends have access to it as well. Right now it is limited to Boost Mobile customers. How many of your friends use Boost Mobile? None in my group.

2. GPS enabled phones reach critical mass

A lot of the new phones coming out are GPS capable, but not enabled. Some require data plans, or extra fees which might be a barrier for some to use the service.

3. Improve the ease of install

As of right now you still have to download a java application to your phone and register through it in order to activate the service. Having to download any type of application will always decrease user conversion. In addition, I don’t think the masses are quite use to downloading apps to their mobile phones (music and ringtones differ in my opinion).

The best way to get around this would be to negotiate a deal with the carriers that all new phones come with the Loopt application already installed and ready to use. However in order to pull this off would require either some serious cash or impecable negotiation skills.

4.  Watch out for the big players

What is to stop an established site like Myspace or Facebook from creating a similar application? The popularity of either of the sites would get them much farther in the negotiation process with major wireless carriers which is a huge advantage. Not to mention the mass amount of leverage a major player would have with their existing user base. I think it is a viable option for either Myspace or Facebook, but I question whether that is the direction Facebook wants to go, and I ask how many more features can Myspace squeeze into their piece of crap design?

I think Loopt is one of the few social networking startups to really keep a close eye on.  I hope they come to Verizon sometime soon so that the service actually becomes plausible for me. Until then, I guess I’m stuck using Facebook.

[tags]Social Networking, Social Network, Mobile Social Networking, Social Media, Loopt, Myspace, Facebook, Brian Balfour[/tags]