Damien Patton from Banjo Talks Location and Privacy at SXSW

I had the pleasure of being asked to speak at SXSW about Privacy in a Location Based World. In my opinion, you can’t talk about location without talking about privacy….and if you are going to talk privacy, you might as well do it in a kilt!

It’s been said that “concerns about privacy tend to be old people issues” or that “privacy is dead.” Privacy is NOT dead and it will not be for the foreseeable future. Privacy is not a one size fits all and that has resulted in obstacles for location based apps.  Based on Nielsen surveys in the last two years, over 70% of consumers expressed concerns with personal data collection and over 50% were cautious about sharing their location with smartphone apps.  Clearly the gaming, rewards and discounts that are provided for sharing an exact location do not equate to the value of personal privacy.  Users should be provided more options to adjust their privacy, and it should be simple.  You can’t bury privacy options multiple layers deep expecting users to find it.

Privacy and location shouldn’t be an ever changing puzzle. This ends up confusing and frustrating the end user especially when they learn the content they are posting is visible to the general public and not just their friends. The control and decision is in the hands of the end user, but there are often times where consumers are frustrated with the efforts required to update or implement their desired privacy settings.

I sat down with Verizon Wireless to expand on my views on mobile, location and privacy.

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Banjo and Twitter Sit Down to Talk Real Time Content Discovery

Every year, Mobile World Congress attracts people from all over the globe to see and hear the latest advancements in mobile technology. One of the events inside MWC was Mobile-loco where the use of location dominated the discussion. Damien Patton from Banjo and Sean Cook from Twitter sat down for a fireside chat with Mike Butcher from Tech Crunch.

Twitter and Banjo are very complementary services. Both platforms are real time content discovery, but it’s generated and surfaced in different ways. Twitter offers content distribution and discovery and with the use of hashtags, people from all over the world can come together to talk about a specific topic or event. Banjo on the other hand takes that content from Twitter along with other social networks and arranges it by location. People from all over the world can go to a specific place or event on Banjo and see what’s happening there.

Damien said, “it’s one thing to see what people are saying about a particular topic, it’s another to see what’s happening through the eyes of the people who are actually there.” We can go on twitter and see what people are saying about the #superbowl or get on banjo and go right to the stadium and see what the people who are there are saying and sharing across all the social networks.

Of course with the use of location, the question of privacy surfaced. “You can’t talk about location without talking about privacy,” said Patton. One of the great features of Twitter, you can add location without having to indicate you are at an exact location, like ‘I’m here at Starbucks.’ Sean said when someone asks where you live, no one ever says they live at the address of their home, they say something like San Francisco or the fact they are from Georgia.

One of the things Banjo uncovered is the use of location by demographic. For instance, when comparing Carnival in Brazil to Mardi Gras in New Orleans, people in Brazil were tagging their location far more in Brazil. The same could be said for the comparison between the Super Bowl in New Orleans compared to soccer matches in Europe. Just as this demographic discussion was getting underway, they heard the dreaded words “we are out of time.” Fortunately, this very exciting conversation will continue at SXSW when Damien talks about Privacy in a Location Based World.

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Fast Company named Banjo One of The World’s Innovators in Local

We are exctied to be named as once of “The World’s Top 10 Most Innovative Companies in Local” by Fast Company. Why? Banjo puts you in any location to experience what’s happening through the people who are there. Think of it this way. If you want to search for something, you go to Google. If you want to know what’s happening anywhere in the world right now, you go to Banjo. Banjo is the way to get an on-the-ground view of what’s anyplace, anytime.

This past weekend, the places on Banjo were filled with exciting events from events around the world. Check out the places that were featured. Clearly these are just a few of the nice surprises you’ll find when you use Banjo! What were some of the main events you visited? Share them with the Banjo team today!

The Rio Carnival – Rio de Janeiro

Chinese New Year – London, New York, San Francisco

Grammy Awards – Los Angeles

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Get a Front Row Seat to Mercedes Benz Fashion Week with Banjo

There’s plenty of buzz in the social-sphere about New York’s most talked about event, Mercedes Benz Fashion Week. Beginning today, every fashionista and blogger in the country will be focusing on the fashion trends  presented on this year’s runways.  Those lucky enough to receive an invite, will attend one or more of the 250 fashion shows scheduled over the next seven days. They will be uploading images from the runways, checking in to after-parties and tagging their favorite designers. From previews of what will be gracing the fashion runway to favorite invitations and fashion week survival kits, we are getting the inside look at NYFW through Banjo.

Banjo is the fun way to explore what’s happening anywhere in the world right now.  Banjo takes you beyond your network and live into what is happening anywhere you want to go, like Mercedes Benz Fashion Week. It’s the next best thing to being there! From quick pics and status updates from fashion week attendees to behind the scenes sneak peeks and never before seen footage, consider it your front row seat to fashion week compliments of Banjo. You’re welcome.

Banjo isn’t just for those who cannot attend, it’s also for those who are there. You could be attending one fashion show while watching another through Banjo, it’s like being two places at once. Download the free Banjo app now and get all of the latest updates and images from Mercedes Benz Fashion Week 2013. If Fashion Week isn’t trending for you, simply type “Lincoln Center, New York” in the search bar and voila, you will see all the content streaming from the people who are there. In the meantime, here are a few of our favorite pics and fall fashion trends already hitting our stream:

AUTHOR BIO

Jacyn Siebert – Jacyn is a lifestyle blogger and social media practitioner in the Bay Area. She specializes in social engagement and online community management with an emphasis in the retail sector. She is passionate about food, how it’s sourced and how it is produced. She loves fashion and uses Banjo to help stay current on events happening around world.

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