Charlotte startup launches social network for real life fun
Charlotte startup founder Joshua Lineberger had a beef with social media websites: They simply werent social enough, he said.
On Tuesday, he unveiled his solution: Socialtopias, a mobile app and social networking site that helps users plan a night out with friends, chat with people in real time and claim deals from restaurants, bars and nightclubs.
Lineberger, 28, said the site, which launches in Charlotte on Wednesday, encourages social interaction between people instead of widening the digital barrier.
Social media is more of a facade kind of masking as social, he said. The digital world was created to eventually better enhance our lives. Right now, its existing and acting as a world itself. You feel that youre more connected to everybody, but you couldnt be more disconnected.
Thats the theme of the Socialtopias pitch.
We often introduce the issue by saying, Ive got 2,000 friends on social media but nothing to do tonight, said Martin Miller, Socialtopias director of operations. You may have all these digital acquaintances, but what are you doing in real life?
The Socialtopias app is the first product developed by Linebergers startup, which bears the same name. Lineberger said he launched it after securing $4.5million from an angel investor, whom he didnt identify. He patented his idea in 2011, according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Its a free download for Apple, Android and desktop users, and employs a recommendation engine that catalogs each users nightlife habits and suggests similar destinations when they log in again.
One night, you might want to go out for a laid-back drink, one night you might want to go out for a bachelor party, Lineberger said. The user experience is going to be very intuitive.
Socialtopias will eventually charge businesses that put their deals on the site if they want to extend their reach beyond their immediate market, Miller said. Those plans are still in the works, as are efforts to reach out to sponsors.
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Charlotte startup launches social network for real life fun