Facebook snaps up FriendFeed

by Stevie Smith - Aug 11 2009, 15:00

In a move that could strengthen its position in the online market against the likes of Google, MySpace and Twitter, social networking heavyweight Facebook has this week slapped down the cash for network aggregation specialist FriendFeed.

FriendFeed, which also boasts a particularly effective real-time search engine, will eventually enable Facebook users to see what their friends are doing across a wide range of social media sites, including those existing as direct rivals to Facebook itself.

California-based FriendFeed, which only carries a mere 12 employees, will continue to operate separately from Facebook for the present time, but is expected to merge directly with the world’s biggest social network at some point in the future.

Meanwhile, the company’s four founding members will be assimilated into Facebook’s creative ranks via senior positions on the network’s engineering and product teams, reports Yahoo Tech.

“I think both companies start with the premise that the most valuable information in the world is the one that comes from the people you care about,” commented Chris Cox, vice president of products at Facebook.

“Building technologies that leverage those relationships everywhere you go is where we’re both starting from,” he added.

Specific financial details regarding the acquisition have not been divulged at this time and Facebook has not officially revealed whether it intends to also enhance its services through the inclusion of FriendFeed’s critically applauded real-time search technology.

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