Facebook has decided to allow friends of deceased Facebook members to transform their page into a memorialized format.
When reporting a death, users must offer 'proof' by submitting either an obituary or news article.
'We understand how difficult it can be for people to be reminded of those who are no longer with them, which is why it's important when someone passes away that their friends or family contact Facebook to request that a profile be memorialized,' Mr Kelly wrote.
Mr Kelly said the Facebook team were inspired to introduce the new option after a colleague was killed in a tragic bicycling accident.
'As time passes, the sting of losing someone you care about also fades but it never goes away,' he said.
'I still visit my friend's memorialized profile to remember the good times we had and share them with our mutual friends.'
Science fiction fans are used to the idea of a digital memorial. Take a look at this moving holodek ceremony honoring fallen comrade Tasha Yar from Star Trek: The Next Generation episode Skin of Evil (first broadcast 25-Apr-1988).
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