It was just confirmed that the Fall Dashboard update will be released next Tuesday, December 4th. One of the new features that will be part of the release is "Friends of Friends." With this new features, you"ll be able to browse the friends list of anyone on your Xbox LIVE friends list and send anyone on your friends list a friends request. We"re also adding a "Friends List" setting in the Dashboard* and on Xbox.com to allow you to control who can see your friends list.
-Everyone (only available to members 18 and older)
-Friends only (available to members 13 and older)
-Blocked (available to all members, and automatic for anyone under the age of 13)
It"s important to mention that when the dashboard update is released, the new default setting will be Everyone (assuming you are of age). For those members that not want to share their friend list, we"ve added a page on Xbox.com that is available today where you can modify this setting as you see fit. If you want to keep your friends list private, you can sign into Xbox.com now at www.xbox.com/fof and change the setting to Blocked (if you so desire.) This gives you a full week to decide which setting you would like for this new feature.
If you want to fully embrace the new feature, you don"t need to do a thing except wait for the update next week.