There's no doubt the majority of location-based apps will have breathed a collective sigh of relief following last week's revelations regarding Facebook's planned – and apparently imminent – Places tab.

If such talk is to be believed, rather than launching its own check-in set-up, Facebook is looking to incorporate the services already out there.

As such, MyTown, Foursquare, Gowalla, Brightkite, SCVNGR, PlacePop and co. won't have to take on the social networking behemoth, but rather, they'll be presented with the opportunity to tap into it.

Location love-in

Facebook's motivation for offering up what appears to be an olive branch, it has to be said, is unclear.

All the talk earlier in the year suggested a much more formal move into the genre was being planned, with its 400 million strong userbase set to destroy the comparatively slender appeal of even the biggest players.

Now, however, Facebook appears content with serving up the infrastructure, attaching itself to the most popular LBS apps on the market without having to commit in any major fashion.

Cool reception

Nevertheless, despite this supposedly warm gesture, it would appear some of those behind the biggest LBS apps are unmoved by the news.

Though many were naturally unwilling to comment due to the unconfirmed status of Facebook Places (the social network has confirmed a location tool is incoming, but refuses to commit to just what form it will take), those that have offered an opinion have been especially cool in their response to the social network's proposed advances.

"The majority of our users use Facebook to some extent already, and we integrate with them where ever we can, and try to offer services that complement or supplement, not compete with Facebook," Brightkite CMO Rob Lawson told us.

"A lot of our recent successes with group text are moving us towards location based messaging not check-in based features, which I think moves us further away from Facebook, whatever their strategy is for location."

Services such as Brightkite that expand beyond the check-in set-up have, perhaps, awarded themselves some cover, even if Facebook's move proves to bemore aggressive than rumoured.

But for the rest, the impact of any location integration on Facebook hinges on just how it will be delivered.

Following Facebook

"It's just hard to know what Facebook will do," offered PlacePop CEO Kent Lindstrom.

"The game-changer - and thing to watch - will be if Facebook allows a form of check-in from its own mobile app. If so, more check-ins would be logged on Facebook in the first week, than have been logged in all the history of other LBS apps combined."

If a dedicated mobile app or tab on its existing mobile site fails to appear, Lindstrom believes Facebook might actually fail to make any notable impression at all.

"Just accepting check-ins from third parties would be a relatively minor event, given that most LBS apps are already Facebook connected in some way."

Pressing for promotion

Indeed, Facebook can't win in the eyes of those working in the location-based scene.

Though the most popular apps have userbases in the millions, the genre is still a fairly niche activity - most Facebook users are entirely unaware as to just what LBS apps are in the first place.

If Facebook launches its own check-in app, the act of checking in would be revolutionised overnight, and it's likely millions of users would happily use the social network's location tool without ever realising the current crop of LBS apps ever existed.

However, if Facebook merely offers some sort of integration with the most popular apps, it's unlikely the genre will be grown at an increased rate as a result.

If nothing more, it is the promotion the social network can offer that may well prove to be key. 

If those behind Places can devise some way to make LBS apps relevant to the site's audience, Facebook's greatest contribution to location won't necessarily be offering up its own tool - it will be encouraging its users to check out the multitude of ways they can check-in.