UPDATE: Gowalla, a location-sharing site that competes with Foursquare, is being reported to have been acquired by Facebook for an undisclosed amount of money.
Citing “a source close to Gowalla”, CNN Money is reporting that most of the employees will move to Facebook’s Palo Alto office, while some will continue to work in its Austin office. Those moving to Facebook HQ will be helping them with their Timeline design, which is still gradually being rolled out to members of the largest social network.
Their source says it happens to be a perfect match.
“As far as the big picture, Gowalla’s vision is about people telling stories, and Facebook’s vision for Timeline is about stories about important moments in life,” the source told CNN Money.
It also appears that Gowalla could help boost Facebook’s own Places service. Both are falling behind Foursquare, despite Facebook’s huge numbers. Gowalla recently switched its focus, moving towards a more travel-guide direction a-la Lonely Planet, but it still is having time struggling to maintain user adoption.
Both Gowalla and Facebook, however, have refused to comment on the acquisition.
“We do not comment on rumors or speculation,” Gowalla’s spokeswoman Pia Arthur told techgeek.com.au in a statement.
That was echoed by a Facebook spokesperson, saying to techgeek.com.au they also don’t comment on rumours and speculation.
12:37 – We’ve updated our story to add Facebook’s statement of no comment.