This year, SXSW festival-goers were fanatical about Foursquare, clocking record numbers of check-ins (over 100,000 in less than 1 week in Austin, TX) and the addition of over 100,000 users in 10 days – a staggering number considering the 500,000 initial user base.

People seem to be flocking to the platform; is it festival hype driven by technophiles or will widespread adoption occur as it did in the case of Twitter?

Foursquare provides a bevy of new features, leveraging its location-based information and micro-blogging platform; however it does present many obstacles to widespread adoption. The core premise of the technology, sharing your location at any given moment in real time, is a sticking point for many users. The site Please Rob Me was started by a young Dutch media technology student to highlight the possible security issues and is testament to this fact.

Social media expert Scott Stratten (@Unmarketing) came to this conclusion as well, explaining that Foursquare is effectively “reverse stalking.” “Women dominate social media,” explains Stratten, “and they are the one’s hesitant to have you know where you are.” One can opt out of ‘broadcasting’ their location, but this defeats the purpose of the platform; without engaging the community by joining a two-way discussion, there is no contribution and no growth.

For marketers, the value of Foursquare is highly targeted location-based offers. Kevin Nakao of WhitePages claims that these advertisements are ten times more effective than non-targeted ad networks; it’s a marketer’s dream. Now, with more companies jumping on the Foursquare bandwagon, the medium is also driving creative campaign creation, such as the Marc Jacob’s nation-wide ‘Fashion Victim’ badge competition.

For businesses, the platform comes as a mixed blessing. On one hand, the marketing opportunities are clear. However, as Stratten points out, there is a more ominous side to Foursquare as often the power is taken out of the hands of businesses and corporations. Users can establish profiles for businesses and provide tags, reviews and tips to fellow customers that are untouchable to the business. This presents a serious concern in the case of negative and damaging comments. Rather than aiming to control the conversation, Stratten advises for companies join in on it.

Pete Cashmore of Masable sees two major trends driving the social media market: location-based services and real-time information – both of which go hand-and-hand with Foursquare. With the recent success at SXSW, one can clearly see the truth of this statement. Not to be outdone, Facebook has also entered the fray, slating the launch of their own location-based services in the near future. Nonetheless, Facebook does not intend to cannibalize on Foursquare’s market; rather, the social media giant aims to work in parallel, aiming to nip any location based services planned by Google in the bud.

Time will tell whether Foursquare truly is the next social media phenom. Will the platform become a part of the average user’s daily routine, a must for social media technologies, or will it be another passing trend. I, myself, haven’t been entirely sold on the application yet, but with the user base growing and location-based offers sweetening the deal, I might be warming to the idea.

The opposing arguments were not as strong as one might have hoped – playing devil’s advocate for such pervasive and important media would certainly be difficult. David Vogt, instructor of the Master of Educational Technology at UBC, boldly claimed that “social media is the bullet that kills formal higher education”; his counterpart Leah Macfadyen of Skylight (UBC Science) stated that “social media is the ‘great distractor’.” I do think this is very hyperbolic, if not outright incorrect – but I can see how some folks might feel that these technologies do turn traditional pedagogy on its head.

Through a series of four questions, aimed at such issues as funding allocation, applicability, anonymity, and privacy to debate aroused quite a few interesting points of view. While it’s fairly obvious that I must side in support of social media in education, as I myself conducted much of my university education using these technologies and have a personal and professional interest, I do acknowledge some of the points against the motion.

The idea of the cost associated with training and educating staff and students on how to utilize the technologies is one that is certainly important to address: education and regulation do cost money. Universities tend to dilute these development costs by creating technological systems that can evolve over time and have more lasting power than typical social media platforms (WebCT Vista, Blackboard); let’s face it, the social web is evolving at a clip that is tough to keep up with. However, these technologies are often too rigid and unwieldy and present many new problems.

The beauty of social media is its ability to be shaped and influenced by user participation. Basic platforms can be utilized to create complex and eloquent information systems and have already been widely adopted in educational circles. Wiki’s, blogs, professorial tweets – these are some of the many of the tools that enhance student experiences in today’s educational environment. We are all given a voice and we use this voice to engage in a dialogue. Top-down educational systems are quickly fading and in their place are new methodologies that put students and educators on level playing fields, engaging in a meaningful way: this is where learning is going.

However, as discussed in my previous entry, these technologies also present an inherent risk. With a public voice also comes public exposure. Institutions must educate their students (and employees) on how to utilize these media to enhance their experience and the experiences of others. Universities must employ codes of conduct and communication guidelines to support social media endeavours and mitigate risk, just as any other organization.

We are now only scraping the surface of learning how to learn; social media presents an unprecedented opportunity to engage with a new and unique generation of students that are primed and ready to join in the dialogue and stand formal higher education on its head.

Corporations now have a voice and so do their employees. This poses a critical question: How can one derive benefit, while mitigating the risk of open communication? As social media usership continues to increase (and it shows no sign of stopping) so too will employee usage. These technologies often blur the line between internal and external communication in companies and it is of the utmost importance to ensure that your workforce conducts itself in a respectful manner –to both the public and to their company.

It’s a simple fact: employees will blog, tweet and update. Therefore, it’s in every company’s best interest to embrace this fact, while setting guidelines for conduct that enable these platforms to be leveraged for benefit while hedging against risk. Social media policies are basic rules set in place to inform employees on how to utilize social media in the context of their business, essentially while keeping everyone happy.

Many companies have already put these communication policies in place, citing codes of conduct for more conventional practices and creating specific guidelines to govern employees’ usage of new media. It’s no surprise that tech companies have been the first to enter the fray, with an eye for new trends and a plethora of sensitive internal information in an industry rife with competition.

IBM takes a stance that encourages its employees to enter the sphere of social media, to participate in ‘open exchange and learning’ as well as to contribute to the public dialogue. Their guidelines are firmly based in their Business Conduct Guidelines, but also include many specific nuances for social media.

Rather than condescend and berate employees with rules, IBM reinforces good behaviour and suggests positive blogging habits, such as transparency, being ‘who you are’ and respecting your audience and co-workers. Along with these are the usual privacy policies, such as protecting confidential information and respecting intellectual property rights. The bottom line is that IBM seems to really get what employees are trying to do through social media; rather than burdening the process, they embrace is by creating a guideline that supports the activity.

HP also follows suit. The forefront of their policy is promises honesty in dialogues with the audience and providing accurate information. Further, they will not delete posts unless they violate their guidelines – meaning: even negative posts will be maintained for the sake of transparency. Throughout, they mention the use of good judgement, leaving much of the responsibility in the discretion of their employees. Another recurring theme is only contributing within one’s area of expertise; much as IBM indicated, it is essential to provide value and contribute meaningful and relevant content.

Intel has yet another excellent example of a positive, reinforcing guideline, aimed at encouraging good behaviour, rather than stifling ingenuity. Their policy insists bloggers create excitement, sharing their high-value innovation with the world; rather than keep this information under lock-and-key, the company encourages employees to drive up buzz. Intel is also aware of the realities of the medium, noting that if you ‘screw up’ and make a mistake, admit it. Again, transparency is key: be upfront and people will appreciate your candour.

While the core precepts of these communication policies are universal – maintaining confidentiality and adhering to codes of conduct – each company takes has its own unique take. The key for these policies is embracing social media as a tool that presents unbridled potential – for transparency, for brand equity, for communication – tempered with an understanding of the potential risks it presents, if left unaddressed.

Apple boasts nearly 150,000 unique applications for their iPhone/iPod Touch (and now iPad) platforms and the number is growing at a staggering rate. Among the ranks are small, but growing, subset of social media applications that are in the vein of the latest microblogging craze, while also exploiting these phones’ GPS capabilities. Call them mixtures of twitter and google maps, each with a unique twist.

Clip Mobile, a small and promising tech start-up in Canada boasts in impressive application that promises much sought-after consumer savings. Load the application and, through GPS tracking of your location, current deals from nearby participating merchants will be displayed. Call it a new incarnation of coupons, but this time you might actually use them! Show the merchant the Clip e-coupon on your phone and the savings are yours.

Savings aren’t your cup of tea? Do web notoriety and competition tickle your fancy? Foursquare (as outlined previously) allows users to check in at unique locations across many cities through GPS location tracking. Be the first to check in at a new location, become the ‘mayor’ of your favourite spot or just become the most well-traveled social media enthusiast on the web. Share this information within the growing social network of foursquare or broadcast over numerous sites, including Twitter and Facebook.

Nonetheless, many might feel a little creeped out by the idea of your applications knowing where you are at any given time. You have to take into account that these applications only process as much information as you divulge. According to Mashable, privacy management is the new currency of social media, ‘how much are you willing to share to get something in return.’ These platforms are very new-fangled technologies and as such are subject to some very early evolutionary pressures. In the near future we’ll see for sure whether they are a passing fad or are indeed the real deal.

Deloitte’s prediction track record speaks for itself. According to Duncan, Deloitte “bats a .656…” when it comes to their forecasts, which is “better than Ted Williams.” Though it might seem like a C+, Deloitte’s claims, which sometimes counter popular opinion, have big implications in industry. In 2009, they accurately predicted the massive boom of 3D cinema (though they don’t foresee growth in 3D TV any time soon) and the accelerating growth of netbooks. Duncan was also to admit their foibles, such as the flop of WiFi radio.

A full report of the predictions, podcasts and other content is available through the site (link), with the Montreal event hosted on uStream (link). For now, I’ll touch upon some of the key predictions that piqued my interest and how they might translate to development of media.

1.)    ‘eReaders fill a niche, but eBooks fly off the (virtual) shelves’: While tech like the Amazon Kindle boasts enhanced dpi and readability, the technical limitations must be addressed to expand the market. Expect printed media to face continual challenges as eBooks readership expands.

2.)    ‘Smaller than a netbook and bigger than a smartphone – net tablets arrive’: Jumping right into the ubiquitous iPad discussion, Deloitte predicts sales in the 10s of millions, as opposed to the average street estimate of 5 million. Despite criticisms of the iPad just being a larger smart phone, Deloitte views this as the hardware’s greatest attribute. The level of interactivity with media through this technology is staggering – as shown in the Sports Illustrated Tablet Demo (link)

3.)    ‘Paying for what we eat: carriers change data pricing and make regulators happy’: Established players in the North American telecomm industry will move away from the “all you can eat” or unlimited data plans, favouring payment buckets, or a tiered usage system. New players in the Canadian market, such as Wind Mobile (link), however, will have the capacity to offer unlimited data packages – price wars for new players doesn’t work, so instead they’ll wage a ‘data war’.

4.)    ‘The shift to online advertising: more selective, but the trend continues’: For companies, online advertising simple has more bang for their buck (10 times better payoff). Deloitte expects a 50% growth in online media expenditure by the end of 2011, growing to 15% of total advertising expenditure.

This avenue presents innovative disruption to the industry, which poses a threat to traditional media by 1) stealing market share and 2) causing price deflation across all media (think mp3’s and the music industry). Not only will their piece of the pie get smaller, but the pie itself will shrink.With bold moves into online marketing, such as Pepsi forgoing the traditional Superbowl advertisements in favour of internet advertising, it’s clear to see this trend in action.

At end the event, I spoke with Duncan about the future of social media. While he believes there is massive potential for growth, he currently sees many companies focusing on the implications the technology has for internal communications, such as Yammer. The hurdle social media advertising lies in accurate and efficient methods of analysing campaigns. Currently many projects split their cost 50/50 between content development and monitoring; this figure needs to be closer to 90/10 before these campaigns are truly effective.

Let’s see if Deloitte can bump up that C+ average this year… time will tell.

It’s a tall order for Apple. How can you create that kind of buzz and still supply the honey?  I guess sometimes hype is a double-edged sword.  Regardless, the iPad is the second most popular trend on twitter (link), matching the crisis in Haiti that has dominated the (micro)blogosphere for the past several weeks.  I still believe it’s premature to judge the product as essentially nobody has even used the product – with the exception of Pee Wee Herman (link).

I think polarizing reviews are only going to incite rage from one camp or the other.  What I have found beneficial were those articles that are purely statements of facts.  Mashable tracked the product’s missing components and yet still provided a fairly agnostic view– one of the few that I found valuable (link).

Many condemn Apple for releasing what they feel is a less-than-useful product or rather one that didn’t reach its potential.  Many abhor the iPad’s inability to multitask or lack of camera, peripheral ports or extended memory.  What needs to be understood that this is all good business. What I maintain when I discuss the subject with others is that if Apple rolled out a true tablet PC, they would cannibalize laptop sales.  Your dedicated Apple consumer will still buy the newest macbook and perhaps even the iPad as well, but if the iPad were the end-all be-all of tablet computing, it would mean one or the other.  It’s just good business.

It’s not that Apple couldn’t deliver; it’s simply that it doesn’t make sense for them to do so.  The iPad will fill a niche that isn’t quite mobile and isn’t quite personal computing, a niche that Apple will carve out for themselves.  The iPad complements other computing devices, it doesn’t replace them. Why cut a bigger piece of an hyper-competitive pie when you can just bake another all by yourself?

Note: this won’t be the case for long, with numerous competitive products coming out from several developers – (link)

My friends’ aptly named ‘Two Guys and a Chevy’ blog is a perfect example of the power of social media in travel. Two self-admittedly not-so-tech-savvy guys utilized several free Google utilities to chronicle their three-month cross-continental road trip through written content, photos and a nifty Google map that tracked their location. In lieu of what would have been cumbersome postcards, phone calls and printed photographs, a simple social media platform enabled the real-time distribution of their travel information, connecting them seamlessly with family, friends and, most amazingly, strangers interested in their travels.

This idea of seamless, real-time distribution is enabled through numerous social media platforms world-wide. Whether it be in your day-to-day life or on a hike though the Himalayas, so long as you have internet access you can share that content and invite your network to share your experiences (a trend that won’t stop any time soon). On a daily basis, dozens of Facebook updates inundate my ‘live news feed’ sharing multi-media stories of friends experiencing the world abroad. Though it may be something we take for granted now or even ignore, the bottom line is that it is still incredibly remarkable. To this point, social media has acted as travel tools largely used for documentation and distribution; nevertheless, expect a tidal shift in the role it will play in the future.

Case in point: Couch Surfing. Through a robust and diverse online community, would-be travelers are able to connect with generous folks who offer lodging in return for… well, nothing. Create a profile, input your travel details and you’ll be hard-pressed to not find a person willing to host you: a complete stranger. While security perhaps is an issue, there is an overwhelming sense of trust. Users ‘pay it forward’ to continue the cycle of contribution and, as their slogan says, to ‘participate in creating a better world, one couch at a time.’

With the economy down, travel itself has become that much more of a luxury. Fret not: social media to the rescue. Foursquare is an ingenious mobile application could be described as a hybrid of Google Maps and Twitter with a little competition thrown into the mix. The application encourages exploring your local environment, prompting users to ‘check in’ at locations (by recording location via GPS) throughout the city and providing incentives to do so. Badges are awarded for those who complete certain accomplishments. Checking into 10 gallery locations will earn you the ‘Warhol badge’ or earn the ‘Superstar’ badge by accomplishing 50 ‘check-ins’ at unique venues. If travel is not an option, you can become a tourist within your own city.

We aren’t about to stop moving and exploring – it’s simply human nature. Nevertheless, social media is here to enhance the experience. After all it’s the journey, not the destination, that counts.