WhatsApp and Instagram are getting name changes ‘from Facebook’

According to a paywalled article by The Information, both Instagram and WhatsApp will receive a subtle name change “from Facebook”.

The social media giant will rebrand its two top-billing apps to “Instagram from Facebook” and “WhatsApp from Facebook” (in case you didn’t know these two were owned by the social network).

As for the reasons behind the change: Facebook wants you to know it owns the two services. “We want to be clearer about the products and services that are part of Facebook,” The Information was told by Facebook.

Both apps will feature the ‘from Facebook’ suffix on Apple and Google’s app stores

The name changes are pretty new for its social networking apps, but the “from Facebook” suffix is something that we’ve already seen with its Oculus VR product, and Workplace team management app.

Functionality of both social platforms won’t be affected by the move, but when searching for the apps in Google Play Store or Apple’s App Store, the tweak will be very apparent.

It’s not clear if this is the first more public step in creating a connected Facebook experience envisioned by Mark Zuckerberg. But features, like status sharing from WhatsApp across Facebook, already hints at more interoperability between all three services in the future.

Feature image: Instagram at F8 2018, by Instagram