Twitter Gets Local – Will You Be In?

Twitter is gearing up to launch a new feature where tweets will have a location associated with them. This opt-in only geolocation tool will allow users to activate their precise longitude and latitude. You will then be able to see what topics are being discussed locally and easily find professionals in your area. Now, instead of getting a worldwide search, when you are searching for, say an “accountant,” you will be able to see tweets from the accountants in your area, as well as their location of business. If this sounds like an interactive yellow pages, it could have that potential as well as an interesting way to keep up with the buzz of what is going on locally in real time.

Twitter co-founder Biz Stone explains, “If people do opt-in to sharing location on a tweet-by-tweet basis, compelling context will be added to each burst of information. For example, with accurate, tweet-level location data you could switch from reading the tweets of accounts you follow to reading tweets from anyone in your neighborhood or city—whether you follow them or not. It’s easy to imagine how this might be interesting at an event like a concert or even something more dramatic like an earthquake. There will likely be many use cases we haven’t even thought of yet which is part of what makes this so exciting.”

Developers are currently testing the new features, which have many implications. While the tool could be a great way to meet people with similar interests or help businesses advertise more effectively, there are obvious privacy concerns. Having someone know exactly where you are and what you are doing is a red flag for opt-ing out of the feature. It all depends on how you use Twitter. For businesses, having a location tool seems like the ideal way to get customers to come to you. But for the average person who tweets from home or elsewhere, it could completely change the way we view personal privacy. Only time will tell.