Foursquare is rolling out a new tool which uses check-in activity to recommend restaurants in the users immediate vicinity.
According to About Foursquare the tool is being tested internally and Foursquare developers hope to release the program to third-party developers who can use the companies API to generate recommendations for various other applications.
Currently the program works by using nearby restaurant reviews (what restaurants are most popular), what restaurants are on the users to-do-list and places you have checked into recently to promote where you might like to eat.
According to SFGate:
It’s an interesting idea, and in-line with founder Dennis Crowley’s stated vision of making Foursquare more about transforming how people explore the world.
It’s probably only a matter of time before sponsored recommendations begin showing up next to other recommendations.
The move is an important step for Foursquare as their location based space continues to become more populated, including the recently launched Facebook Places which is expected to add more Facebook integration as the program develops.
Here’s a video of Foursquare founder Dennis Crowley announcing the new recommendations feature:
What do you think about the Foursquare recommendations feature and what would you do to improve upon how recommendations are provided.
