News: Facebook reveals its smartphone plans

In response to the suggestions earlier this week that social networking platform Facebook is developing its own smartphone device, reports have surfaced that the group is working with the mobile phone manufacturer INQ Mobile Ltd to create two devices which may carry the website’s branding and services.

According to Reuters, the smartphones will carry Facebook’s services and should be released in Europe and the US in 2011.

Although Facebook could not confirm the release dates or details behind the devices, it did acknowledge that it is working with INQ Mobile.

On Monday Facebook admitted that it intends to push deeper into the mobile phone market but has no intention of releasing a Facebook branded model.

Instead, the company plans to integrate more deeply with mobile manufacturers, perhaps delivering proprietary Facebook applications to handsets upon shipping.

"Our view is that almost all experiences would be better if they were social, so integrating deeply into existing platforms and operating systems is a good way to enable this" revealed Jaime Schopflin, a spokesman for Facebook.

The controversy came about after TechCrunch reported that Facebook was working on software which would integrate on a new handset model, hinting that the website may have been gearing up to release its own device. This has however been revealed as untrue by the group.

Facebook reveals its smartphone plans

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