Typology of Location-Based Services & Locative Media

Over the past couple years, I have compiled a list of location-based services and locative media (see my prior post for how I define these).

Based on this ongoing monitoring, I have found they break down into the categories below.

Typology of Locative Services:

• Art (e.g. showcasing art, encouraging artistic production, or fostering art experiences)
• Coordination, Communication, and Safety 
• Commerce and Marketing
• Geosocial Networking (e.g. social networking centred around places visited)
• Health
• Local Discovery (e.g. encouraging exploration of places or discovering new info about places)
• Location-based Games (e.g. using one's physical location as element of game play)
• Hyperlocal News and Information (e.g. news based on a small area, neighbourhood)
• Navigation and Transportation
• Personal Efficiency and Organization (e.g. place based reminders, lists)
• Social Recommendation and Navigation (e.g. business' reviews)
• Travel and Place Guides

More and more applications are offering a variety of locative features along with a suite of functionalities, so there are only few instances of apps that fit into just one category.

If I missed a category, let me know.