Alongside this Trophy Case, Foursquare is rolling out their Badge Partner Program. They’ve been working with partners for some time on badges, but now things appear to be getting more formalized. While they note that the program is still in its early stage (sign up here), they’re rolling out the Trophy Case with partner badges from brands like The American Red Cross, Ellen, Radio Shack, and People magazine.
The Trophy Case has a way to separate partner badges from actual Foursquare badges.
The Partner Badges represent an interesting opportunity for Foursquare. While the service launched with only 16 badges that they made themselves, it has always been a popular part of the gaming element of Foursquare. Now they can presumably monetize it. Rival Gowalla is doing something similar. It’s a decent play because it doesn’t seem like Facebook is going to go in that direction.
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Authors: MG Siegler