Facebook has announced that it will rebrand the Instagram and WhatsApp apps and services to make it more clear that they are owned by the social network.
In a statement to CNET, Facebook says that it wants “to be clearer” about which products and services are part of Facebook. “We want to be clearer about the products and services that are part of Facebook,” Bertie Thomson, a Facebook spokeswoman, said in a statement Friday.
Both apps will display a new “from Facebook” tag in the App Store, and on both apps’ login screens. The apps will be branded as “Instagram from Facebook” and “WhatsApp from Facebook.” Both moves should help make it clearer that the apps are owned and operated by Facebook.
While Facebook acquired WhatsApp back in 2014, a recent survey showed that half of the messaging service’s users were not aware the app was owned by Facebook.
Facebook’s announcement comes on the heels of a report form earlier this week that the Federal Trade Commission is investigating the company over antitrust concerns. One part of that investigation will involve the company’s acquisitions of WhatsApp and Instagram, over concerns as to whether the social network purchased the services in an effort to hinder competition.
