Facebook appears to have bought Gowalla

Remember geolocation? It was supposed to be a huge thing that was going to change everything we thought we knew about social networking online. But like Crystal Pepsi or the movie career of Chris O’Donnell, it never seemed to hit the big time. Foursquare is niche, Facebook Places, Facebook’s geolocator for mobile, has been killed. And now, Facebook has purchased Gowalla, an app/service that lets user accumulate points for checking in at various places and earn discounts or something along the way. It actually launched on the same day as Foursquare but was never as popular (making it the Chicago Hope to Foursquare’s E.R..) So now Facebook is said to have bought it. This could mean a big feature upgrade to Facebook or it could just mean a talent grab for the Big Face.