Facebook Offers Nearby Friends Feature
Facebook has started rolling out a feature called Nearby Friends. Users can turn on the feature to help them discover which friends are nearby or on the go. When notified that a friend is nearby, the user can then get in touch or meet up.
“For example, when you’re headed to the movies, Nearby Friends will let you know if friends are nearby so you can see the movie together or meet up afterward,” wrote Andrea Vaccari, Facebook Product Manager, in an article on the website.
Nearby Friends is an optional feature. Users can choose who can see whether they are nearby (such as friends, close friends, or a specific friends list) and it can turned on and off at any time. Both the user and the friend needs to have the feature turned on and choose to share that information before notifications are sent.
Users can also choose to share a precise location with particular friends for a set period of time, such as the next hour. The friend will see exactly the user’s location on a map, to help them meet up.
Nearby Friends will be available on Android and iPhone in the U.S. over the coming weeks.
Personal tracking available to everyone that you presumably can control?? No thanks, I’ll keep my positioning to myself.