Instagram has quietly removed the Boomerang and Hyperlapse apps from the App Store and Google Play. Boomerang was introduced in 2014 which lets users create 1-second loop videos, whereas, Hyperlapse came a year later that was used to make time-lapse videos. The social media strategist Matt Navarra and Twitter users posted about the applications’ deletions, although Instagram did not issue a public notice on its site.
Instagram has removed its standalone Boomerang and Hyperlapse apps https://t.co/ovoSOLuPKr
— Matt Navarra (@MattNavarra) March 7, 2022
Boomerang and Hyperlapse apps were taken down on 1st March
According to data provided by Apptopia, Hyperlapse, and Boomerang’s last day on the app stores was March 1, 2022. Boomerang had seen 301 million lifetime global downloads, compared with just 23 million for Hyperlapse. Additionally, Boomerang was still averaging 26,000 downloads per day at the time of its removal. Although these apps were launched separately from Instagram, their key features were later integrated into the social network.
The only standalone app left with Instagram is the Layout app – an app for making photo collages – which is available to download. Although, it is still unclear if Instagram may eventually phase this standalone app out as well. While IGTV will be removed from the App Store later this month, the company says the Layout app will survive for now. As the features – IGTV, Hyperlapse, Threads, and Boomerang – are already integrated into the apps so keeping standalone apps doesn’t make any sense.
Read more: Meta Shuts Down its College Social Network, Facebook Campus
Instagram rival, Phhhoto, sued Meta
Last year, Meta was sued by a photo app called Phhhoto for allegedly copying its features for Instagram. Phhhoto’s technology allowed users to capture five frames in a single point-and-shoot burst which could be looped into a short video. According to Phhhoto, Facebook copied this main feature and released it on its Instagram platform as Boomerang. The suit reads; “Zuckerberg downloaded and installed the app onto his phone, entered the phone number of his device into the Phhhoto app, created a personal account, and posted a profile picture of himself to his new Phhhoto account.”
Source: Tech Crunch
