Support for Geo Location allows developers to create location-based applications and services.

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Now consider the myriad digital tech options we have at our fingertips: geofencing, social integration, digital coupons, crowdsourcing, crowdfunding, near field communication, GPS, location-based applications, real-time bidding and the Internet of all things.

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For example, the developers at Foursquare whose job it is to create location-based applications continue to come up with an array of tools that enable customers to get information about products and services right in the store or even while in a restaurant, a museum, or a hotel.

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Bolstered by users like Andersen and Ostrowski, developers are adapting their location-based applications to run on the iPad. (Most of these apps work best on the 3G version of the iPad, which has built-in GPS, but will also operate on the cheaper, Wi-Fi-only iPad.) The trend caught some developers by surprise.

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The platform allows developers (and neophytes like me) to create real-time location-based alerts and applications for smart phones.

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Meanwhile, retailers are exploring location-based services, including mall-based applications, that allow registered customers who are on site special offers.

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Many of the winning applications had some kind of social networking feature, including Life360, a location-based system that, among other things, allows users to form social networks with others in their neighborhood.

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Google executives have said they're looking for applications that make good use of some of Android's unique capabilities, including location-based services, accelerometers that can sense motion and direction, and always-on social networking.

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