And yet here we are discussing a company that apparently have no problem doing exactly that. Just like most other companies out there.

Is Facebook solving a problem out there? Or are they solving a problem they created themselves.

Many businesses are build around this concept and the lines between solving problems and creating a demand are rather blurry.

Thom are you serious? of course Facebook solves the problem -- before it was hard to easily connect with others on such a broad spectrum. No, they were not first with social platform, "friending", IM, sharing photos, etc, but they did all this in the right time and place plus all the luck they had as a result they are the biggest social network which is a huge leverage on the market. My parents found tens of friends from military, schools, camps that took place 40 years ago, people that they lost connection with because there were no internet and no tools in place that time. So as much as I don't like Facebook and all the ongoing privacy issues, I would say: yes, they did solve a problem!

So by your definition the germans are solving a real problem then. The problem of localization. In other words, they are saving the world.

See the lines are rather blurry. Ultimately everything can be argued as solving a problem. But that is IMO a very unproductive way of looking at things.