Method, apparatus and system for social networking

A system comprising:

• a first electronic device and a second electronic device communicatively coupled over a network,
• a server configured to maintain at least one instance of a template application for interacting with the first and second electronic devices to assist in the provision of social networking functionality within one or more service areas,
• wherein the first electronic device generates a first user profile for the first electronic device as a function of attributes of the first electronic device, and wherein the second electronic device generates a second user profile for the second electronic device as a function of attributes of the second electronic device;
• wherein the first electronic device:
• determines a conceptual distance between the first and second electronic devices based at least in part on the first and second user profiles when the first and second electronic devices are associated with a specific service area, and
• provides a service over the network accessible by the second electronic devices when the conceptual distance is within a predetermined threshold and the first and second devices are associated with the specific service area;
• wherein the first and second electronic devices are further configured to access and utilize templates from the server's template application, to facilitate social networking functionality within the specific service area;
• and
• wherein the server's template application is configured to generate and provide the templates to the electronic devices, and the templates are used by the electronic devices in their interaction and provision of social networking services within the specific service area.