The New York Public Library Partners With foursquare To Unveil A New “Badge”

MARCH, 30, 2011 – From now on, when New Yorkers check out books at The New York Public Library, they can check in on foursquare.

Today, The New York Public Library is unveiling its new “Find The Future Centennial Badge,” the result of a historic partnership between the Library and geo-location pioneer foursquare. The red and yellow badge – which celebrates the 100th birthday of the Library’s landmark Stephen A. Schwarzman Building on 42nd Street – is the first ever awarded to a public library.

“On May 23, the Library's iconic Fifth Avenue building will turn 100 years old,” said Susan Halligan, marketing director at NYPL. “Our partnership with foursquare initiates our Centennial celebration, entitled ‘Find the Future.’ So check in to foursquare and check out the New York Public Library."

"The NYPL’s landmark building has been a New York institution for 100 years, and it's pretty amazing to see them starting their next 100 by embracing new ways to reach their fans," said Dennis Crowley, CEO and Co-founder of foursquare. "We hope the partnership will introduce even more people to all The Library has to offer."

Foursquare users can earn the new badge by using their mobile devices to “check in” at various NYPL locations across The Bronx, Manhattan and Staten Island. Their foursquare friends can then see where they are, turning the users into makeshift ambassadors, sharing their NYPL visits and promoting the Library’s services, programs and collections to new audiences.

"We are especially excited about the partnership because the foursquare platform allows us to use the 90 virtual NYPL locations in the Bronx, Manhattan and Staten Island as a canvas to promote physical visits and interaction with the Library in a fun way,” said Johannes Neuer, NYPL Ecommunications Manager.

Badge winners will get a complimentary one-year Foursquare Friends Membership entitling them to an array of exclusive member-only perks; the Library will hold a monthly drawing for tickets to a LIVE from the NYPL event among NYPL “mayors” (a user can become the "mayor" of a venue if they check into that venue more than any other foursquare user in a 60-day period); other promotions include a behind-the-scenes tour of the Map Division for mayors; and a photo op in front of the Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III Trustees Room fireplace, immortalized in the movie “The Day After Tomorrow,” that can be unlocked by checking in a certain number of times.

Foursquare is a location-based mobile platform with 7.5 million users worldwide that makes cities easier to use and more interesting to explore. By “checking in” via a smartphone app or SMS, users share their location with friends while collecting points and virtual badges. Corporations and private companies often offer their own badges, but it’s a rare feat in the non-profit world.

The Library has long been established as a leader in social media and new technology, with over 114,000 followers on Twitter and 30,000 friends on Facebook, making it the biggest public library on either platform. It also launched a blog on Tumblr called NYPL in late 2010 that already has nearly 3,000 followers.

Contact:

The New York Public Library

Angela Montefinise | 212.592.7506 | angela_montefinise@nypl.org

Foursquare

Erin Gleason | 917-859-0501 | erin@foursquare.com