Facebook hires Gowalla co-founders

Facebook has confirmed that it is hiring the co-founders of Gowalla and key members of the development team, rather than acquiring the location-based services company.

A CNN report claimed that Facebook had bought Gowalla for an undisclosed sum, but the company said on Monday that it has actually hired Gowalla co-founders Josh Williams and Scott Raymond, along with selected employees from the location "check-in service".



As a result of the move, the Texas-based Gowalla will close in 2012.

The news comes after the world's biggest social network announced plans to open a software engineering centre in New York as part of its growth strategy. This marks the first such base for Facebook away from Silicon Valley on the US West Coast.

In a statement, Facebook said: "We're excited to confirm that Gowalla co-founders Josh Williams and Scott Raymond, along with other members of the Gowalla team, are moving to Facebook in January to join our design and engineering teams.

"While Facebook isn't acquiring the Gowalla service or technology, we're sure that the inspiration behind Gowalla will make its way into Facebook over time."

Gowalla is a two-year old social network that launched as a rival to Foursquare and others, allowing users to check in at locations and share images.

Members initially were able to receive virtual items, but the company struggled against its competitors and later refocused as a provider of "social" guides to around 60 cities based on postings by users.

A blog post on Gowalla's site said: "About two months ago, my co-founder Scott and I attended F8. We were blown away by Facebook's new developments. A few weeks later Facebook called, and it became clear that the way for our team to have the biggest impact was to work together. So we're excited to announce that we'll be making the journey to California to join Facebook!

"Gowalla, as a service, will be winding down at the end of January. We plan to provide an easy way to export your Passport data, your Stamp and Pin data (along with your legacy Item data), and your photos as well. Facebook is not acquiring Gowalla's user data.

"As we move forward, we hope some of the inspiration behind Gowalla - a fun and beautiful way to share your journey on the go - will live on at Facebook."

Facebook already offers a location-based service, called Facebook Places, on its website and mobile apps, but hiring the Gowalla team could make this a much richer experience.

It is expected that Williams, Raymond and the ex-Gowalla developers will be incorporated into the team working on Facebook's Timeline, which transforms members' profiles into visual-rich histories of their lives.

Timeline was announced in September but has not yet rolled out to users. It is expected to launch soon.