Facebook has announced the closure of the MSQRD app, which allows users to take selfies with augmented reality effects. The AR app will be removed from the Play Store and App Store on April 13th.
The MSQRD app was bought by Facebook at its peak in 2016. We can say that it became the foundation on the basis of which Facebook implemented augmented reality technologies in its other services. One of the currently used Spark AR tools allows you to create masks using AR technologies for this.
According to reports, Facebook promised that after purchasing MSQRD, the app would continue to be a standalone product and receive regular updates. However, the actual support for the AR application was discontinued by the end of 2016. It is worth noting that in recent years, AR applications that allow you to apply different visual effects to users' faces in real time have become very popular. Obviously, for Facebook, the MSQRD application has become unnecessary, since similar solutions are available to users in other company products.
“April 13, the MSQRD app will disappear. When the app became part of Facebook in 2016, photo filter technology was just beginning to emerge. We are currently focused on bringing you the best possible AR experience through the Spark AR platform, which allows anyone to create their own AR effects and share them with other members of the Facebook community,” the developers said in a Facebook post.
Source: 3dnews.ru