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If you're a Facebook user, you probably know of Facebook Places. Facebook Places was a feature that allowed you to check into your location along with tagging the people you were with at that particular location. However, this means you probably also know that Facebook got rid of this a few months ago. The main reason for this? Foursquare. Foursquare is a location based social network. It allows you to check-in at locations, leave tips about the place, get specials/offers at certain businesses, earn badges, and become the "Mayor" of locations you check into constantly. This network existed before Facebook implemented their location-based feature and Facebook could never quite compete.
Now that Foursquare has become the most popular location based social network, another company has decided to take on one feature that Foursquare lacks. Kevin Rose and his company, Milk Inc, have released their first phone application called Oink. Oink takes the Foursquare experience one step further by allowing users to rate/comment on the products/services inside the business.
I use Foursquare everyday but wonder if Oink could pose as a threat for them. When I check in at a restaraunt that I have never been to, I often look through the "tips" to see what other people recommend. Essentially, that's where Oink comes in. You are able to add pictures and comment about the things on the menu. I think that once more people start using it, it will be quite useful. At the moment, the content has not been built up enough to actually be seen as a threat to Foursquare. However, I think that once it gains more users and has more content (more places, more pictures, more comments), Oink could be a competitor to Foursquare. Oink also has a reward system the more you use it.
Since Oink was recently released, you need an invitation to access it. While I hope that maybe Foursquare and Oink could collaborate, I think Oink will do well quite well on its' own.
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