Dodgeball Founders Part

Two years after the internet search engine and all-round corporate behemoth bought Dodgeball, its founders have decided to leave their vision behind. The parting wasn't necessarily a happy one, as they both agreed that Google has refused to give Dodgeball the respect and support that it deserved. Dodgeball has since floundered and has become somewhat stagnant as other breakout social networking sites such as Twitter have witnessed a growing popularity.

Dodgeball is a unique social networking site that utilised mobile technology to allow users to keep in touch with and make new friends via an interesting concept. Users reported to Dodgeball.com their location, whether it is a club, coffee shop, or just about any other local hangout and Dodgeball would relay this information to any of their freinds, or other Dodgeball users, in the local area. If someone was close by, they could meet up. It is an interesting, albeit potentially stalker-friendly social networking experiment that, if coddled appropriately with enough Google money and enthusiasm, could have been a revolutionary means of networking. Dodgeball was released in an initial launch of large US metropolitan cities and its owners had visions of expanding the network much farther. However, taking a look at the areas that Dodgeball covers, its map has had little, if any, inclusions since the Google takeover.

Dodgeball.com's network of cities currently includes 22 cities: Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Las Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, Austin, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston, Denver, Las Vegas, New Orleans, Miami, Atlanta, Detroit, Twin Cities, Madison, Chicago, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, New York City, and Boston.

Dodgeball also used mobile phone technology to alert Dodgeball friends and "crushes" if they were in a certain distance of one another by SMS text messaging, allowing meet ups and potentially romance, if not just casual friends. The interface is also handy for checking out local nightlife and other hangouts since Dodgeballers reviewed the places they frequent, which could come in handy if you were considering one bar you had never been to over another.

The Dodgeball founders have come to terms with their split and are looking forward to new projects. One is interested in joining forces with the creators of large-scale gaming like the immensely popular "Pacmanhatten" and "ComQuest". The other is pursuing his interests in mobile technology by accepting a position with IconNicholson as a Creative Strategist.

Only speculation remains as to Google's future plans for Dodgeball, but if the last two years are any indicator, don't expect anything revolutionary.