Facebook Launches Facebook Places

Facebook has today announced Facebook Places, a Foursquare come photo sharing application that takes the world’s most popular social networking site into new geo-aware territory.

Pitching the product as providing “serendipitous meetings,” CEO Mark Zuckerberg told a presentation in Silicon Valley that the product offers three things: helps you share where you are with your friends, see where your friends are, and discover new places.

The striking difference with current location applications is a strong emphasis on photos: while you do check in, there’s a emphasis on photo taking as a way to link to the check in.

Initial launch partners include Gowalla, and surprisingly FourSquare. The involvement of FourSquare with Facebook Places isn’t clear: a spokesperson for the company delivered a rambling speech that only mentioned Facebook at the end, and only that he liked the API vs any indication as to when Four Square may integrate it.

Facebook Places will launch on touch.facebook.com or via a new iPhone application that is due out today. Notably, Places will only be available to users in the United States.