Inlope is a new Microsoft-backed local social network

Is there room for another social network in your life? Inlope, a Munich, Germany-based startup which was founded last year and has just launched its app reckons so. And it’s not alone, having persuaded Microsoft to cover its costs for a year while it seeks to scale its idea into a living and breathing local social network. Inlope is not disclosing how much money Microsoft is handing over but CEO and co-founder Chris Obereder says this is not your typical investment for equity. 

Let’s say you like golf (for some reason). How can you easily find fellow golfers in your area? That was the dilemma facing Christopher Obereder, CEO and co-founder of Inlope, a mobile-only social network that today joins a growing crowd of interest-based communities. “We were trying to find golf partners,” he told VentureBeat. “It’s hard if you’re 20 and looking to find other 20-year-olds.” About 120 interests are currently available in the new app-based service, including sports, animals, technology, traveling, music, nature, and political issues. Users cannot add interests by themselves, but they can email suggested ones to Inlope for approval. There are two text-and-media newsfeeds — a local one that can include your selected interests in your area, ranked in order of geographical closeness to you, and another for getting updates from Inlope people you’re following.