Bandsintown Gets More Social With Mobile Apps
This week concert tracking service Bandsintown upgraded its mobile apps and continued its push towards becoming a social music network in its own right. New features primarily focus on information sharing and invitations to go to shows combining the important elements of voyeurism and direct connection.
Bandsintown's most recent tweeks to their mobile app encourage connections between friends. They also come with the note that "Bandsintown is a sizable social network of engaged music fans."
It's a nice reminder of how iteration, working your way through small changes over time that can lead to big results, resolves such industry dualities as:
Do we want to be a social network or a service with social features?
But Bandsintown reminds us that a third way exists which, in their case, has involved an information service focused on concert data gradually evolving into a social music site.
Social Updates to Bandsintown Mobile Apps
"View friends concert RSVPs, and view them in various orders, such as the most popular show your friends are attending."
"Now, you can invite friends to join you for shows directly through Bandsintown. The app also recommends friends based on location and musical taste."
"With this release, Bandsintown allows you to rate past events and share with your friends to help discover new concerts."
The updates are a nice mix of elements that allow you to spy on stalk learn more about your Bandsintown friends without interacting along with new interaction options such as inviting friends to shows.
Not to read too much into a features update but one could easily frame this news as evidence of a backdoor dating network.
Bandsintown at Music Biz 2013: How Artists Can Make Mobile Work for Them
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Hypebot Senior Contributor Clyde Smith (@fluxresearch/@crowdfundingm) also blogs at Flux Research and Crowdfunding For Musicians. To suggest topics for Hypebot, contact: clyde(at)fluxresearch(dot)com.
