Gowalla team checks into Facebook

"We're excited to announce that we'll be making the journey to California to join Facebook!" Josh Williams, a co-founder of the Austin, Texas-based company said in a blog post.

Facebook confirmed that Gowalla co-founders Williams and Scott Raymond and other members of Gowalla would join Facebook's design and engineering teams in January.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

"In talking with the Gowalla team, we realized that we share many of the same goals: building great products that reach millions of people, making a big impact quickly, and creating new ways for people to connect and share what's going on in their lives," a Facebook spokesman said.

"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," the spokesman said.

Williams said Gowalla, which launched two years ago, will wind down at the end of January and the company will let users know how they can export their data and photos.

"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," he said.

Like Foursquare, another popular location-based service, Gowalla lets users with GPS-equipped smartphones share their whereabouts.

Friends at Gowalla share pictures and comments from places they visit, earning "passport stamps" as souvenirs of their adventures.

Facebook last year launched Facebook Places, its first venture into offering location-based services.

With Facebook Places, members of the social network can "check-in" from restaurants, bars or other social venues and let their friends know where they are.

(c) 2011 AFP