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I built a Tinder-like matchmaking app where users log in with their Facebook account and the app then auto-matches users by their FB likes. I thought taking the

I built a Tinder-like matchmaking app where users log in with their Facebook account and the app then auto-matches users by their FB likes. I thought taking the hassle out of swiping could give my app an edge over Tinder. It was working fine for a week or so before Facebook caught up and revoked my API keys (effectively killing the app). They didn't give any reason besides some vague recommendation to review their Terms of Service. A few months later at their F8 developer conference they announced they'll be launching their own matchmaking service which will work pretty the same way I built my app. Moral of the story: never trust big tech. P.S. I open sourced the app a few years ago: https://bitbucket.org/stonepillarstudios/workspace/projects/NEC https://bitbucket.org/stonepillarstudios/workspace/projects/... Feel free to fork & revive.

arbol 6y ago
Wow that really sucks! Sorry to hear that. I suppose you would've needed patents on the idea to stop them from stealing it.
- vmception 6y ago
  Or they were already working on it and hadn't announced, and he would have spent all the time and more money working on the patent only to see Facebook launch the same thing before he even filed it. Assuming there wasn't already a patent out there that covered this.
killtimeatwork 6y ago
I've heard that it's a good rule of thumb to not develop something that is just an extra feature of an existing behemoth (e.g. Atlassian plugins etc., but also the thing you built). If you're failure, then you've wasted time and money and if you're a success, the behemoth will just reimplement your work as a part of their platform. Pretty much the only way to win it so make something that provides marginal revenue, which makes reimplementation not worth it for the giant (but potentially worth it for you). I suspect a lot of Unity and Unreal plugins and authoring tools reside in that niche.
- interestica 6y ago
  Wordpress/Automattic bought up successful plugins like WooCommerce and just integrated them.
  - spdionis 6y ago
    Automattic is not in the same league as FAANG, it doesn't really apply.
- plumeria 6y ago
  Couldn't one expect at least a job offer?
  - killtimeatwork 6y ago
    Maybe, but working hard for months/years a chance at a job offer doesn't sound that amazing anyway. BTW I worked in a startup once and a guy, who was developing opensource plugin for our product, applied for a job with us. The owner (a known blogger BTW) said "Why hire him if he's already working for us?"
    - besulzbach 6y ago
      I think that was the owner being shortsighted. If the plugin was something that a reasonable fraction of your users would like to have, then very shortsighted. Not only you had a person that already knew much more about your product than the average potential hire, but a person that probably was interested in your product (and maybe knew what users wanted) too.
    - inglor_cz 6y ago
      "Why hire him if he's already working for us?" Because you do not want him to abandon the project if it is useful to you?
      - deleted 6y ago
        [deleted]
bobkrusty 6y ago
This like the case of Amazon antitrust current Tech giants are need to be replaced
- Malp 6y ago
  5/10 troll
- jmnicolas 6y ago
  > current Tech giants are need to be replaced There's no reason their replacement will be any more moral. They should be dismantled imho.
  - futurehero 6y ago
    Should the tech giants really be punished for being too successful? I don't think so. They got to their size by being better. Nobody thought yahoo would ever be unseated. Yawho?
    - _theory_ 6y ago
      Antitrust laws have been around for a long time. Competition is essential for a free market to function optimally. You can disagree, but that's why they exist. Its not to punish anyone.
newdude116 6y ago
"I built a Tinder-like matchmaking app where users log in with their Facebook account and the app then auto-matches users by their FB likes" This is what most dating apps do, except Tinder (trying to do a clustering in an n-dimensional space). That Tinder outclasses most other dating apps is proof that your approach wont work. We don't look for people with similar interests for dating. Unfortunately we don't chose who or what we like in a partner.
oferzelig 6y ago
Sounds like you should be taking this case to the Congress.
templarchamp 6y ago
If you had patent, you could go after FB and have some out of court settlement.
- wwn_se 6y ago
  In reality you can't. The upfront cost of defending a patent is huge, like hundreds of thousands. Patents are fundamentally broken and really don't work like most think or want them to.

arbol 6y ago

Wow that really sucks! Sorry to hear that. I suppose you would've needed patents on the idea to stop them from stealing it.

vmception 6y ago
Or they were already working on it and hadn't announced, and he would have spent all the time and more money working on the patent only to see Facebook launch the same thing before he even filed it. Assuming there wasn't already a patent out there that covered this.

killtimeatwork 6y ago

I've heard that it's a good rule of thumb to not develop something that is just an extra feature of an existing behemoth (e.g. Atlassian plugins etc., but also the thing you built). If you're failure, then you've wasted time and money and if you're a success, the behemoth will just reimplement your work as a part of their platform. Pretty much the only way to win it so make something that provides marginal revenue, which makes reimplementation not worth it for the giant (but potentially worth it for you). I suspect a lot of Unity and Unreal plugins and authoring tools reside in that niche.

interestica 6y ago
Wordpress/Automattic bought up successful plugins like WooCommerce and just integrated them.
- spdionis 6y ago
  Automattic is not in the same league as FAANG, it doesn't really apply.
plumeria 6y ago
Couldn't one expect at least a job offer?
- killtimeatwork 6y ago
  Maybe, but working hard for months/years a chance at a job offer doesn't sound that amazing anyway. BTW I worked in a startup once and a guy, who was developing opensource plugin for our product, applied for a job with us. The owner (a known blogger BTW) said "Why hire him if he's already working for us?"
  - besulzbach 6y ago
    I think that was the owner being shortsighted. If the plugin was something that a reasonable fraction of your users would like to have, then very shortsighted. Not only you had a person that already knew much more about your product than the average potential hire, but a person that probably was interested in your product (and maybe knew what users wanted) too.
  - inglor_cz 6y ago
    "Why hire him if he's already working for us?" Because you do not want him to abandon the project if it is useful to you?
    - deleted 6y ago
      [deleted]

bobkrusty 6y ago

This like the case of Amazon antitrust current Tech giants are need to be replaced

Malp 6y ago
5/10 troll
jmnicolas 6y ago
> current Tech giants are need to be replaced There's no reason their replacement will be any more moral. They should be dismantled imho.
- futurehero 6y ago
  Should the tech giants really be punished for being too successful? I don't think so. They got to their size by being better. Nobody thought yahoo would ever be unseated. Yawho?
  - _theory_ 6y ago
    Antitrust laws have been around for a long time. Competition is essential for a free market to function optimally. You can disagree, but that's why they exist. Its not to punish anyone.

newdude116 6y ago

"I built a Tinder-like matchmaking app where users log in with their Facebook account and the app then auto-matches users by their FB likes" This is what most dating apps do, except Tinder (trying to do a clustering in an n-dimensional space). That Tinder outclasses most other dating apps is proof that your approach wont work. We don't look for people with similar interests for dating. Unfortunately we don't chose who or what we like in a partner.

oferzelig 6y ago

Sounds like you should be taking this case to the Congress.

templarchamp 6y ago

If you had patent, you could go after FB and have some out of court settlement.

wwn_se 6y ago
In reality you can't. The upfront cost of defending a patent is huge, like hundreds of thousands. Patents are fundamentally broken and really don't work like most think or want them to.