Google launches Latitude mobile social networking tech

Google has launched an intriguing new technology called Latitude, which is a mobile social networking tool built around its Google Maps service.

The tagline - 'See your friends on a map and get in touch' - pretty much describes it. You sign up, and can then see mugshots of your friends on a Google Map, with the ability to contact them by SMS, instant messaging or a voice call.

It's initially available for BlackBerry, Symbian and Windows Mobile handsets, with Android and iPhone coming at some point in the future. The ability to run in the background is presumably fairly important, which may explain the iPhone delay.

"This adds a social flavor to Google maps and makes it more fun," product manager Steve Lee tells AP.

There's no mobile gaming element, of course, but that doesn't mean there couldn't be in the future - particularly on Android.

Nokia has talked about the potential of hooking its N-Gage mobile games service in with its Maps tools to create new kinds of mobile games. Well, Google may now have the tools to do a similar thing - or at least allow developers to.