Google is launching Shoelace, a new social network thought for small circles of people. For the moment it's active only in the city of New York
After the failure of Google+, following the failure of Orkut, following the failure of Google Buzz, Google could launch a new social network: it's called Shoelace, it's an existing app, it was developed by Area 120 (the internal workshop at Google where innovative projects are tested) and on the official website you have to delve into the FAQ to find a trace of the name Google.
From what we can see at the moment, Shoelace is a much smaller and less ambitious project than Google+: no longer a full-fledged social but a simple app to connect people based on shared interests and geographic location. At the moment it's being tested only in the city of New York, but the Area 120 team is working to extend the service to the whole US territory. The name "shoelace" means shoelace and, explains the official website, "The promise of Shoelace is to bind people together based on their interests, like two shoelaces."
How Shoelace Works
We haven't had a chance to try Shoelace, because it's currently only available to New Yorkers and because you get in by invitation only. From what we read on the site, this pseudo social from Google is an app (for Android and iOS) designed for those who have recently arrived in the city and want to meet new people in the surrounding area. Shoelace works via "Loops," which vaguely resemble the old Google+ Circles. Apparently, accessing the Loops isn't all that easy: "After installing the app, we ask each user to join a community, which often requires verification, to make sure we only hang out in the Loops with people you might want to know. We also work hard to make sure everything you see in Shoelace, from profiles to loops, is aligned with our rules and community standards."
Differences between Shoelace and Google+
Taking all information with due caution, as the project is in its early stages and we can't field test it, Shoelace would seem very different from Google+. While with Google+ Big G has attempted the impossible mission of ousting Facebook from the throne of king of universal and ubiquitous social networks, with Shoelace it would seem intent on proposing a social network for niches and small groups. Almost elitist if the procedure of entering the Loops should prove to be really selective as it would seem. The stated intention is to connect people in real life, rather than to create yet another Facebook-style virtual plaza.
Social or showcase?
On Shoelace's website it says "Every day, we discover the best things happening around you - from soccer games to free cabaret shows - so you don't have to look for them. Feeling inspired? Create your own events and invite anyone to come." Google has a wealth of real-world information at its disposal: that from Google Maps and all the Google My Business tabs. It can't be ruled out that one of the intentions of the team working on Shoelace is to monetize this information. Do you like soccer and live in Piazza Verdi? Around you there are nine other people who love five-a-side football, today is Friday and the field 300 meters from your home is open even after the working hours of all these people. To book the field costs X euros per person. But if you book through Shoelace you can get a discount.