Snap Inc. launched Snap Map in June 2017 to give users the option to share their location data with friends. That feature was developed based on the product concept of location sharing app Zenly that was acquired by Snap a month prior.
Now, Snapchat is finally working on a new attraction for Snap Map obviously in an effort to differentiate its offerings from Facebook"s services, which have blatantly copied some of its products such as the ephemeral Story and augmented reality games. Prolific reverse-engineering expert Jane Manchun Wong has revealed that Snapchat is experimenting with "Status", a new feature that allows you to check in to a certain place with Snap Map and show your current activity using appropriate Bitmoji characters.
For example, you can set your status with a Bitmoji that indicates you"re reading a book or dining out with your family. Of course, your Status activity can only be seen by people you"ve shared your location with. Your Status will expire after you"ve left a place, but Snapchat will keep track of the places you"ve checked in to and the people you were with. These pieces of information will then be stored in a private repository called Passport.
Nonetheless, there"s an option to remove specific places from your visit history, plus you can choose not to display your Status on Snap Map by turning on ghost mode. Since Snapchat is known for the ephemeral nature of all content uploaded to the service, your location-based content will also be wiped out from the app if you leave it unopened for eight hours.
The experimental feature is currently being trialed with a limited number of users in Australia, and Snap has yet to confirm whether it"s planning for a wider rollout.
Source: Jane Manchun Wong (Twitter) via TechCrunch