Scvngr
Encyclopedia
SCVNGR is a social
Social gaming
Social gaming commonly refers to playing games as a way of social interaction, as opposed to playing games in solitude, like some card games and the single-player mode of many video games...

 location-based gaming
Location-based game
A location-based game is one in which the game play somehow evolves and progresses via a player's location. Thus, location-based games almost always support some kind of localization technology, for example by using satellite positioning like GPS."Urban gaming" or "Street Games" are typically...

 platform for mobile phone
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...

s. The application has both a consumer and enterprise component. Companies, educational institutions, and organizations can build challenges, the core unit of their game, at places on SCVNGR from the web. The service also supports SMS
SMS
SMS is a form of text messaging communication on phones and mobile phones. The terms SMS or sms may also refer to:- Computer hardware :...

. SCVNGR is building a game "layer" on top of the world.

By going places and doing challenges, players can earn points. They are also able to broadcast where they are and what they're up to to their friends on Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...

 and Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...

. By doing challenges, players can unlock badges and real-world rewards, such as discounts or free items.

, over 1000 companies, educational institutions, and organizations have built on SCVNGR by creating challenges (and often rewards) at their locations.

In February 2011, it was speculated that SCVNGR had reached over 1 million users.

In March of 2011, SCVNGR launched LevelUp
LevelUp
LevelUp is a mobile payments platform created by Cambridge-based start-up SCVNGR. The LevelUp mobile application uses QR code technology to allow for mobile transactions to be made at local businesses via iPhone and Android phone.History=...

, a mobile payments platform to increase engagement and loyalty at local businesses.

Funding

  • The company raised a $35k Seed round on 6/08 with Dreamit Ventures. A $750k round was raised in 8/09 with Highland Capital Partners
    Highland Capital Partners
    Highland Capital Partners is a venture capital firm that focuses on investments in seed, early, and growth stage companies in the communications, consumer, digital media, healthcare, and information technology sectors. The firm's partners include: Peter Bell, Sean Dalton, Bob Davis, Richard de...

    .

  • A $4M Series B round was raised on 1/10 with Google Ventures
    Google Ventures
    Google Ventures is the venture capital investment arm of Google Inc. that makes financially driven investments in technology companies. Google Ventures seeks to invest in start-up companies in a variety of fields ranging from Internet, software, and hardware to clean-tech, bio-tech, and health...

     , Highland Capital Partners and DreamIT Ventures.

  • On January 11, 2011 an additional $15M round was raised with Google Ventures
    Google Ventures
    Google Ventures is the venture capital investment arm of Google Inc. that makes financially driven investments in technology companies. Google Ventures seeks to invest in start-up companies in a variety of fields ranging from Internet, software, and hardware to clean-tech, bio-tech, and health...

    , Balderton Capital, and Highland Capital Partners.

See also

  • Geosocial networking
    Geosocial networking
    Geosocial Networking is a type of social networking in which geographic services and capabilities such as geocoding and geotagging are used to enable additional social dynamics. User-submitted location data or geolocation techniques can allow social networks to connect and coordinate users with...

  • Gowalla
    Gowalla
    Gowalla is a location-based social network. Users 'check in' at Spots in their local vicinity, either through a dedicated mobile application or through the mobile website. As a reward users will sometimes receive virtual "items" from check-ins. Items have developed to become a promotional tool for...

  • Location-based game
    Location-based game
    A location-based game is one in which the game play somehow evolves and progresses via a player's location. Thus, location-based games almost always support some kind of localization technology, for example by using satellite positioning like GPS."Urban gaming" or "Street Games" are typically...

  • Social gaming
    Social gaming
    Social gaming commonly refers to playing games as a way of social interaction, as opposed to playing games in solitude, like some card games and the single-player mode of many video games...

  • Gbanga
    Gbanga
    Gbanga is a mixed reality, social gaming platform for mobile phones developed by Zurich-based startup, Millform AG. The platform runs on real-time locative media, developed in-house, which means that the gaming environment changes relative to the players real-world location...

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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