Facebook Reportedly Hires Former Apple Manager Richard Williamson

Back in November, word surfaced that Apple's Richard Williamson was given the boot as part of a change in the Maps team. Now sources have again talked to Bloomberg, this time saying that Facebook has hired him as a manager with its mobile software group. The alleged hiring is said to have happened sometime in the "past couple of weeks." The info comes from two sources who are said to be familiar with the dealings.

As noted by Bloomberg, Williamson's original work at Apple was working on the original iPhone, having been assigned to the job by Jobs. Further into his long career at Apple, Williamson was switched to the company's Maps efforts, a change that eventually cost him his job as Apple purged employees and started fresh in light of the many criticisms the mapping service garnered.

As Facebook makes a bigger entrance in the mobile world with the recently-announced Home, it has brought in quite a few software engineers, including another former iPhone manager, Greg Novick. In another big-name hiring, the social network also nabbed Loren Brichter, a software designer who made the first Twitter app for the iPhone. The latter is a rumor stated by two sources.

For now at least, Facebook has declined commenting on the claim and nothing official has been stated. Earlier today, rumor surfaced that the social network is in talks with Apple to bring its Home software to the iPhone, again via sources that spoke with Bloomberg. Others state that the talks were not taking place, however, and many are dubious of the claim due to the closed ecosystem that is iOS.

[via Bloomberg]