To some it’s a dream come true. To others it’s truly a nightmare. It’s the ability—the curse?—of being tracked by your friends anywhere, at any time.  

For GeoSentric, the Amsterdam-based company behind location-based social-networking platform GyPSii, the task of bringing to market the tools that will let friends pester you 24-7 just got a lot easier. The company, formerly known as Benefon, on Monday announced a $13.1 million round of private equity funding.

“Our original target was to raise $5.5 million, but given the considerable investor interest that GeoSentric is attracting together with the potential size of the market (it) meant that we were compelled to increase the size of the round,” Chairman Dan Harple said in a statement. The round was led by Horizon Group and Schroders Private Bank.

GeoSentric, founded in 2006, offers location-based social-networking via mobile devices. GyPSii software customers can use their mobile phones do all of the typical social-networking activities—upload photos or make changes to a profile, for example—as well as use GPS tools to locate and navigate to nearby friends.

People can access the GyPSii application either by downloading it to their phones or by purchasing a mobile device from a wireless carrier with the software preinstalled. Shane Lennon, a vice president with GeoSentric, said his company expects to announce a partnership with a carrier in the next few weeks.

The company is also set to launch a public beta of its own social network by the end of the month. That network will be available in English for users in the Americas, Asia, and Europe.

GeoSentric’s move in mobile social networking comes amid a broader push by both social networks and wireless carriers to make social networking and the ability to publish user-generated content available to consumers at all times in all places.

GeoSentric isn’t alone. More than two years ago Google acquired location-based service Dodgeball. And just this summer Nokia purchased media sharing service Twango. Industry experts also say Apple’s iPhone is expected to lead to more sophisticated social-networking services.

Through these deals and tools, social networks hope to become a more constant communication service for the average consumer. Carriers could see dollar signs:  by signing up more users for more expensive data plans that offer web access and the ability to upload and download content.

GeoSentric’s Mr. Lennon said his company is pursuing a business model in which GeoSentric profits from both a subscription fee shared with carriers plus revenue from mobile advertising.

Though industry trackers such as ABI Research have predicted a 13-fold increase in mobile advertising between 2006 and 2011, many social-networking players remain fairly skeptical. At a recent conference Jeremy Verba, CEO of teen-oriented social network Piczo, said the building of a successful business based on mobile advertising is still a long way off. Advertisers “haven’t even mentioned mobile. They’re still trying to figure out the web,” Mr. Verba said.