Rejected twice for being too similar to Apple’s “Find My Friends” app, a new app from developer IZE called “Find My Facebook Friends” is now live on the App Store. The app essentially works the same as Apple’s, allowing you to see your friend’s location on a Google map. It also provides privacy settings to control who can view your location. The difference is rather than using your Apple ID and iCloud account, the app allows you to sign-in and invite friends through Facebook. We talked to the developers who told us the story behind why Apple rejected the app the first two times…
Other features include the ability to receive proximity alerts when friends are near, send messages integrated with the native “Facebook” app, and set your location preferences based on each friend or lists.
Interestingly, the reason Apple originally rejected the app was due to its name and icon being too similar to the Find My Friends app’s icon (both icons pictured right). The developer informed us the original name of the app was “Find My Friends For Facebook.” After resubmitting the app with the name “Find My Facebook Friends,” and the same icon, the app was once again rejected. Ultimately the developers resubmitted the app, this time with a new magnifying glass icon and the same “Find My FaceBook Friends” name. Apple accepted it, so it seems Apple’s original objections were based more on the icon than the name or similarities to the Find My Friends app.
The Find My Facebook Friends app is available now on the App Store for both iPhone and iPad for 99 cents.
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