DHAKA: Facebook is launching a new free mobile app for its popular Groups feature that lets users create and interact with communities on the site, whether they’re based on hobbies, geography or culture.

More than 700 million of Facebook’s 1.35 billion members use Groups, according to the company. It says the site hosts hundreds of millions of groups, which people use talk to others who share their religion, to plan holiday dinners, or to discuss hobbies or health issues.

The new app is meant to make accessing Groups easier on a mobile device, allowing users to avoid having to dig through the Facebook app, reports salon.com.

It lets people manage their existing groups or discover new ones, either based on recommendations or by searching for different topics, the report added.

Users can also create a shortcut on their phone’s screen for their favorite group if they want to access it quickly.

Facebook says that, as with its messaging app, having a stand-alone Groups function “helps people share faster and more easily with all the groups in their life.”

Facebook Inc. has been working to expand its presence on people’s mobile devices by creating — and buying — apps such as Messenger, Paper, Instagram and WhatsApp. The apps Facebook created from scratch through its Creative Labs have faced varying levels of success.

BDST: 1334 HRS, NOV 19, 2014