Skift Take
There was so much hype about Groupon and Zynga, and perhaps their stars are getting clouded over. But, Foursquare, if it handles its commercial strategy with a little more acumen than it has shown so far, could really turn into a viable business.
Foursquare enhanced its Explore feature in an iPhone update, taking on everyone from Yelp to Google and Zagat, and even Goby. And, one twist that will be hard to overlook are the big, fat advertisements that dominate the first screen of the app as you begin to browse through recommendations for nearby businesses.
With today's iPhone update, Foursquare introduces scores for local businesses based on user reviews and check-ins, and the local nature of the recommendations and the user data Foursquare collects each time you check in to a location make for a very potent advertising mix.
That is, of course, if the blitz of advertisements doesn't turn off users because there
