If there’s one thing we love here in the good ol’ U. S. of A., it’s television — so it stands to reason that various companies have had a go at TV-based social networks and other trendy services that tie America’s love of television in with America’s love of social networks. To date, none have been overly successful, but that may soon change with the launch of a new iOS app called IntoNow. Comprised of engineers formerly with Google, MTV Networks and IDEO, Palo Alto-based IntoNow on Monday launched an app and network combination bearing the same name. After having played with it for a while this past weekend, we have to say we’re intrigued.Put into a single sentence, IntoNow is basically FourSquare for TV enthusiasts, but with Shazam-like technology that makes the check-in process a breeze. The app includes the company’s “SoundPrint” technology, which allows users to tap a button to record an audio sample of the program they are currently watching. The app uploads the sample to IntoNow’s servers and almost instantly identifies the show or movie currently being viewed. Once posted, users can chat with friends on IntoNow about the show or movie, share it on Facebook or Twitter, and even add it to their Netflix Instant or DVD queues. The technology monitors 130 broadcast stations in real-time, so it might not be able to identify shows on a public access station in Podunk, Iowa — but rest assured that it has all the big networks covered.IntoNow is available immediately in the App Store for free, and is compatible with the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad.
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