SOCIAL NETWORKING site Facebook has introduced a “check-in” service that makes it easier for users to share their whereabouts with other people.
The new feature, called Places, is aimed at helping users of the social network find friends and disclose their own location, Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said.
Places works with existing location-aware tools offered by Foursquare, as well as Gowalla, Mr Zuckerberg said. The feature, which can be accessed through mobile phone browsers or dedicated apps, is currently only available to US users.
In the future, Facebook may include an advertising component to Places, Mr Zuckerberg said.
Services that help web users share their whereabouts and find nearby friends could generate as much as $4.1 billion (€3.2 billion) in annual ad sales by 2015, according to Borrell Associates. The features can help marketers more easily target customers.
“As of tonight, Facebook has become the most important location-based service out there,” said Michael Gartenberg, an analyst at technology research firm Altimeter Group.
“Facebook is already the hub of my social network for many activities and this becomes a natural feature to add.”
Places fits with Facebook’s strategy of adding tools and advertising options that may help it make money from a user base that surpassed 500 million this year.
While Places is compatible with Foursquare and Gowalla, it may also lessen the need for web surfers to depend on alternatives, Mr Gartenberg said.
“Facebook’s entry doesn’t mean the immediate death of other location-based services,” he said. “It will, however, put much more pressure on them to evolve.”
However, making it easier for users to broadcast their locations may raise privacy concerns.
Earlier this year, Facebook came under fire from users and lawmakers who complained the company hadn’t gone far enough to help keep personal data under wraps.
Facebook has pledged to include comprehensive privacy controls in its new feature.
When users opt in to the service, their locations are only available to friends. They can choose whether to more narrowly share the information or post it broadly.
Privacy concerns haven’t stopped existing location services from growing. Foursquare reached 1.8 million users in June, up from about one million in April.
“Facebook made the absolute right decision by making this opt-in,” said Debra Aho Williamson, an analyst at EMarketer. “Overall, the privacy controls seem smart and intuitive.”
– (Bloomberg)
