CorpComms Magazine

Mercedes-Benz drivers will soon be able to access a list of friends in the neighbourhood and check out local restaurants that they 'like' from the comfort of their dashboard after the motor company announced plans to install a Facebook service into its cars.

The service has been specifically designed with drivers in mind, and will offer a limited selection of features that centre around the locations of friends and businesses.

Robert Policiano, product manager for Telematics at Mercedes, said that the Facebook service will not pose a greater risk to concentration than standard in-car navigation systems, adding that any activity that involves inputting text will be disabled while the car is in motion.

The Facebook service has a stored list of pre-written posts to make it even easier for the driver to stay in contact while on the move.

Dan Rose, vice president of partnerships and platform marketing at Facebook, said: 'Now that cars have screens that are intelligent, you would expect that more and more car manufacturers will want to make those screens capable of allowing people to connect with their friends and take advantage of the social context that comes along with that.'

'One of the core things that people do on their screens in the car is GPS navigation and the ability to see which of your friends are nearby is something we think will be really interesting for people.'

Mercedes' Facebooks service does not support third-party apps.

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