MTV Networks' MTV and VH1 have inked a deal with location
based social media company Foursquare. The deal will see the service integrated
into MTV and VH1 programming, as well as spots pushing users to join the
service and "friend" their favorite cast members. The companies will utilize
Foursquare's new "celebrity mode," which lets people follow celebrities, even
if they don't know them personally. When a celebrity "checks in" somewhere,
they can send the check in just to their friends, or to all of their followers.
"Our audience wants more ways to engage with their
favorite shows and celebrities they watch and love," said Kristin
Frank, general manager/senior VP of MTV & VH1 Digital, announcing the
deal. "This partnership with foursquare and the new Celebrity Mode gives
fans a way to connect and get a behind-the-scenes look into the lives of their
favorite MTV and VH1 talent by finding out about their favorite hangouts, clubs
and shops."
The first celebrity participating in the program will be JerseyShore's DJ Pauly D, with
other cast members from The Hills, The City, Jersey Shore,
Real World: New Orleans, The T.O. Show, What Chilli Wants
and Fantasia For Real joining as the partnership goes on.
"As foursquare becomes more mainstream, we've been
seeing more and more celebrity users want to sign up. Celebrity Mode allows
high profile users to use foursquare with their inner-circle friends while also
allowing new ways for these users to connect with their fans," said Dennis
Crowley, foursquare co-founder and CEO. "We're excited to partner with MTV and
VH1 as it's a great opportunity to test drive our Celebrity Mode features with
on-air personalities and the rest of the foursquare community."
MTV Networks is the second major media company to ink a deal
with Foursquare. NBC Universal's Bravo Media formed its own partnership with
the startup earlier this year.
