• by Gavin O'Malley , Staff Writer, June 25, 2012

Facebook has often been criticized for its poor “discoverability” tools, or those that help users discover and meet new friends. In response, the social network has developed a new feature that lets users find friends and potential friends nearby. “It’s another step in Facebook furthering its reach into mobile, and creating services to meet new people -- rather than building up more connectivity with the ones you already know,” TechCrunch writes. “And, in keeping with Facebook’s emphasis on being as ubiquitous as possible, for now it’s not being delivered in a native app, but via the mobile web.”

Apparently already accessible via Facebook’s mobile apps, he service comes a little under two months after Facebook announced the acquisition of Glancee -- a mobile app that helps users discover people near them with similar interests. Per the deal, Glancee’s three founders joined Facebook, and shut down their app. Some are currently calling the new service “Friendshake,” but there appears to be some confusion about whether Facebook will use this name or not.