MyTown players can get The Blues with H&M promotion

Location-based check-in apps are one of the industry's hottest sectors at the moment; certainly in the US where the likes of MyTown, Foursquare and Gowalla are gaining millions of users.

And further blurring the gap between reality and virtuality comes MyTown's link up with the fashion chain H&M.

In what it calls the first-of-its-kind campaign - The Blues - is designed to drive store traffic through the US-only social game that enables players to unlock rewards and earn points by checking-in from real-world shops and locations.

Rival Foursquare might have something to say about that first-of-its-kind status however, having announced a similar deal with Condé Nast and Marc Jacobs in mid-February as part of New York Fashion Week.

The MyTown promotion works in conjunction with the retailer's The Blues clothing collection.

MyTown players who check-in at a shopping centre or other locations such as spa or hair salon in a city where an H&M store can be found, will be prompted to unlock H&M virtual Blue items. These provide in-game points, while also generating awareness of H&M and hopefully encouraging users to visit a nearby store.

"Not only is this effort fresh and cutting-edge, but it reaches an elusive sub-set of our target group, a highly-engaged urban audience that are in and around our stores across the country," said Steve Lubomski, H&M's North American marketing director.

"H&M further demonstrates the compelling opportunities for marketers in the location-based app space by bringing together elements of the real world and digital world," said Keith Lee, CEO of Booyah, MyTown's developer.

"The Blues campaign is the exact type of effort and brand engagement we envisioned for users of MyTown."

H&M's The Blues campaign runs through to March 11th.