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"Facebook has attracted criticism, after it banned users from uploading their photos to the social network via a third-party app offering similar functionality to the Facebook-owned Instagram.  Vintage Camera, available on Apple devices, allows users to add visual filters to make pictures appear retro, and then share them on social networks. It is claimed to have seven million users worldwide.    Its maker, French firm Presselite, was told by Facebook that the decision to block the app was down to negative feedback from users. In a message to Presselite, after it appealed the decision, Facebook said: &amp;quot;We&amp;#039;ve checked out the circumstances of your app&amp;#039;s restriction, and we found that your app received strong negative feedback from users and their friends. &amp;quot;Unfortunately, we will not be able to restore your app&amp;#039;s functionality.&amp;quot; But Presselite co-founder Antoine Morcos questioned whether Facebook&amp;#039;s $730m (\u00A3481m) acquisition of photo-sharing app Instagram last year may be &amp;quot;influencing&amp;quot; Facebook policy.  Morcos said that Vintage Camera had received around one negative report per 1,000 images shared using the app, according to Facebook&amp;#039;s own data. He also believes that the negative reports were due to &amp;quot;inappropriate use&amp;quot;. &amp;quot;We don&amp;#039;t understand how Facebook could block the access to millions of users of the Vintage Camera application who want to share their photos on Facebook, only because of a few negative feedback reports,&amp;quot; Morcos wrote in a press statement reported by BBC News.   &amp;quot;As you all know, Facebook has acquired the Instagram photo-sharing application, and we hope this acquisition is not influencing this kind of access limitation for other photo applications.&amp;quot; In its own statement, Facebook said that Presselite had received three warnings that it was in violation of Facebook&amp;#039;s rules, but had not taken any action.  &amp;quot;While we provide an open platform, every application on Platform is required to meet our policies. We take both automated and manual steps to detect violations and ensure compliance,&amp;quot; Facebook told BBC News.  &amp;quot;Pending on the violation, we give developers an opportunity to come into compliance via a warning system.  &amp;quot;In the case of this application... [it] was not in compliance with our platform policies, and had received three warnings prior to our systems taking action on the application.&amp;quot; Last month, Facebook blocked users of video-sharing app Vine from &amp;#039;finding people&amp;#039; on Facebook. Vine is owned by social networking rival Twitter. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.digitalspy.com/tech/news/a461603/facebook-blocks-instagram-style-photo-filter-app-vintage-camera/>