Facebook rolls out location sharing feature in Messenger
- Tuesday, March 28th, 2017
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Facebook has introduced a live location feature in Messenger – less than a week after Google done exactly the same thing in Maps.
The feature, which is rolling out on both Android and iOS, enables users to update friends and family on their whereabouts by tapping a ‘location’ icon in Messenger. Through this icon, users are presented with a blue button to confirm that they want to share their location with the chat. The user’s location will be shared with that chat for 60 minutes, but can be stopped at any time in that period. Additionally, the user who the location has been shared with will be able to see an ETA to their location for the sharing party.
Users will still be able to share static points on the map if they wish to highlight a meeting spot, for example.
Selena Wang, product manager at Messenger, said in a post: “We’ve been testing this for a little while, and people tell us that Live Location is helpful when trying to coordinate with friends, telling people how close you are when you’re on your way to an appointment, or even sharing where you are with your roommate when you’re on your way home at night. You can share your Live Location with a group of friends in Messenger or just with one person.”