Facebook wants to start a mini social network for you and your neighbours

Facebook is reportedly gearing up to create a hyperlocal social network and is testing a new feature that will help users engage with people who are near them. Users will be able to create separate profiles to share information and connect with their neighbours. The service will be geofenced and you will be restricted to connect with people till a particular radius around your location. As per a report by The Verge, Facebook has plans to monetise this service as well and will show “relevant ads” in your locality.
Facebook is already said to be testing this feature called ‘Neighborhoods’ in Calgary, Canada and may roll out to more people if this is a success. Facebook is interested in creating a hyperlocal network as it sees this to be a crucial element in the future of social media.
A Facebook spokesperson has already confirmed this to Bloomberg and said, “More than ever, people are using Facebook to participate in their local communities. To help make it easier to do this, we are rolling out a limited test of Neighborhoods, a dedicated space within Facebook for people to connect with their neighbours.”