Facebook has a history of separating specific features from its mobile app to make stand-alone apps. Users may remember the consternation they felt when social network first removed Messenger from the main Facebook app. Then it created a Groups app and today, it's releasing a brand-new Events app.
Facebook says more than 100 million people use Facebook events every day. By creating a new app specifically around events, Facebook hopes it'll be easier for users to find local happenings and to keep track of invites from friends. There's even an interactive map for visually browsing what's going on around you.
But Facebook Events isn't just a place to discover things to do. It also serves as a calendar application, continuing Facebook's strategy of embedding itself into every aspect of your life.
You can even import events from Google Calendar and iCloud to make Events the default calendar app on your phone.
Monetizing apps
So why does Facebook keep separating its features into separate apps? The biggest reason is simple: money.
With Facebook Messenger, the company introduced chatbots to curate news and send friends money. Just a couple of days ago, Facebook announced that you'll be able to shop for and buy things from the Shopify bot.
With Events, it's easy to imagine Facebook eventually selling users tickets to concerts and other events nearby, though the app doesn't currently do that.
If you're ready to live in Facebook's brave new world, you can download the Events app for iPhone from the App Store. Android users will have to wait, but Facebook says the Android app is "coming soon."
