There are many tech companies in which there are divisions that experiments in creating weird and novel products that might not necessarily be in line with the company’s image or core operations. Sometimes this can lead to new and exciting business opportunities, but more often than not a lot of them tend to be failed experiments.That being said it looks like Facebook has had enough of experimenting with some of its apps and has recently revealed that they have shut down its Creative Labs and pulled apps like Slingshot, Rooms, and Riff that were made under the division’s banner. For those unfamiliar with Creative Labs, basically this is Facebook’s experimental division which also cooked up apps such as Paper.
According to a statement made by a Facebook spokeswoman to CNET, the reason behind the pulling of the apps was because some of the features had already been incorporated into other Facebook apps, thus rendering them a bit redundant. “Since their launches, we’ve incorporated elements of Slingshot, Riff and Rooms into the Facebook for iOS and Android apps.”
The spokeswoman also revealed that the apps had not been updated in awhile. That being said this isn’t the end of Facebook’s experiments (it’s only natural that companies experiment in a bid to evolve and grow). The company has stated that they will continue experimenting with new apps, but as far as Creative Labs and the abovementioned apps are concerned, those will be biting the dust.