Using their phones, crowds create heat maps of hot gigs at music festival

3VOOR12, a multimedia platform for music that’s run by Dutch broadcaster VPRO, is piloting a new heat-mapping system at this year’s Lowlands music festival, which takes place next weekend. Using familiar web terminology–Hot or Not–the festival’s visitors will be able to let others know which of twelve venues is hosting the hottest show at any particular moment. The voting system will run on a mobile app that users can download to their internet-enabled phones. (Those with wifi-enabled phones will be able to use 3VOOR12’s free festival-wide wifi.) Considering the distance between venues at large events like Lowlands, a crowd-controlled, up-to-the-minute heat map seems like a clever idea, especially if users can view voting results from people who like the same bands they do. (Not currently a feature of 3VOOR12’s application.) Related: CitySense, a mobile mapping tool that uses GPS to reveal San Francisco’s nightlife hotspots. Spotted by: Dutch Cowgirls