In December we brought you news that Facebook had acquired social check-in service (and Foursquare competitor) Gowalla. Though there were rumors at the time that Facebook would be getting Gowalla users’ data in the sale, those were quickly quashed as…
Gowalla: Facebook Not Acquiring User Data
As you may know, Gowalla was acquired by Facebook. The news has been ciculating since Friday. Gowalla made the official announcement on its blog today, however, and is driving home the fact that Facebook is not acquiring user data. Also,…
Gowalla Acquired By Facebook
Facebook has acquired location-based provider Gowalla, according to a report. Citing “a source close to Gowalla”, CNN Money says Facebook has purchased the company for an undislosed amount. The Gowalla team, including founder Josh Williams, will move from their Austin,…
Gowalla To Open UK Office
Earlier this month, Gowalla made a splash at SXSW in Austin, seeing all sorts of check-ins and earning the conference’s top award in the mobile category. Now (although there probably isn’t a true cause and effect), the company’s going to…
Thinking of Check-Ins As Searches That Aren’t Going to Google
Businesses are still struggling with finding the right social media strategies, let alone strategies for check-in apps like Foursquare, Gowalla, and the recently launched Facebook Places. WebProNews spoke with Lawrence Coburn, CEO of geolocation app provider DoubleDutch about where this industry is headed and what it means for businesses looking to take advantage.
Gowalla Gives Users New Trip Planning Tools
Gowalla announced that it has some new trip tools and options today.
"The Trips feature is one of our favorites on Gowalla, and it’s also a favorite of users, universities, businesses, non-profit organizations, you name it," the company says. "Something we’ve been meaning to knock out for a while and have finally gotten around to is making Trip creation an easier and smoother process, and we’re rolling it out today."
Gowalla Launches OAuth-Based Check In API
Gowalla has announced the launch of its new Check in API. This is different than the Gowalla API, which was launched in February, which first let developers tap into Gowalla data for their apps.
"With today’s release, we’re expanding what’s possible, enabling your applications to create check-ins on behalf of users," the company says. It utilizes OAuth 2.0 to do so.
The company gives developers the following guidelines for using the API:
Privacy and Security Still Obstacles for Check-In Services
uTest has released the results from a check-in services "Bug Battle" competition, in which over 300 users from about 40 countries reported bugs in popular check-in services Fousquare, Gowalla, and Brightkite. A total of 870 bugs were reported – technical, functional, and GUI bugs in the web and mobile apps of these three services.
Why Even Local Search is Becoming More Real-Time
As the web quickly becomes more mobile and social than ever, we see apps filling voids that were mostly left empty throughout the history of search and social media. People are increasingly sharing their locations with their friends, certain apps, certain sites, and even the world.