Facebook to shut down AR face-filtering app MSQRD on April 13

Facebook acquired the MSQRD app back in 2016 that indeed played a vital role in enhancing the company’s portfolio of AR image and video tools like ‘Spark AR’ that lets users create custom face filters for Facebook and Instagram.

MSQRD logo. (MSQRD)

Facebook's face-filtering app MSQRD will be shutting down soon. The announcement came directly from the AR app's Facebook page. The app will be removed from both the platforms - Android and iOS from April 13 as per the announcement.

"Thanks for using the MSQRD app! On April 13, the MSQRD app will be going away. When Masquerade joined Facebook in 2016, photo filter technology was just beginning to emerge. MSQRD was fundamental to building early momentum for AR and providing insights to build the platform Facebook has today," said the firm.

Facebook acquired the MSQRD app back in 2016 that indeed played a vital role in enhancing the company's portfolio of AR image and video tools like 'Spark AR' that lets users create custom face filters for Facebook and Instagram.

It seems like the team will be merging in to 'Spark AR' and will focus more on that platform. "Our focus is now on delivering you the best-possible AR experiences through Spark AR, the platform that allows anyone to create their own AR effects and share them across the Facebook family. You can still find AR effects directly within Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and Portal. Huge thanks to our community for the support," added the announcement post.

Today, Instagram and Snapchat offer several in-built face-swapping tools. Fuelled by Snapchat Lenses and Facebook Stories, AR is gaining fast traction.

Meanwhile, Facebook is said to be building an operating system (OS) that will power its hardware: mainly AR and virtual reality (VR) headsets like Oculus and video calling devices like Portal that currently runs Google's Android OS. By moving to its own OS, Facebook could integrate more indigenous features into its devices. The social media firm is also said to be working on a business edition of its Oculus Go and Oculus Quest VR headsets.

(With inputs from IANS)