Social Connectivity
Glofun Labs Notebook

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Social connectivity is the sense of belonging that comes with the ability to communicate interactively with other humans. Of course, the most basic form of social connection is face-to-face speech. But socially connective technologies have existed since humans began using clay tablets to send messages. Social connection is the dominant use of such modern information infrastructures as mobile phones and the internet.

All mobile games have the potential to foster online social connectivity.  LEGs, on the other hand, offer some unique opportunities:

• By limiting the physical distance at which players can interact with each other or with game entities, LEGs can prompt players to connect with nearby players for assistance.
• By bringing players together in the same real-world game space, LEGs can even initiate face-to-face social contact. 
• By encouraging players to explore geographically-delimited game spaces, LEGs can increase the odds of fortuitous non-game social contact.
• By encouraging players to interact actively with fantasy objects, LEGs stimulate the friendly curiosity of bystanders.  (The folks at Glofun Labs have experienced this many times.)
• By , LEGs can encourage players to work together in the real world to accomplish game goals.
• focusing the player's senses on the real world

Further Reading

The Wikipedia entry for Social Software provides a good overview of current and emerging technologies for online social connectivity.

Andrew Odlyzko, in Content is Not King, asserts that social connectivity has always a greater market value than content.

Amy Francetic and Lynn Rampoldi-Hnilo, in The Wireless Future: A Look at the Youth Unplugged, emphasize the importance of both entertainment and social connectivity to the future of wireless.

Zachary Rodgers, in What MySpace Means for Marketers, provides a number of examples of brands finding a place within the "undisputed juggernaut of social media."