Some social media companies see augmented reality (AR) effects as a promising revenue stream for creators. But not Meta. The parent company of Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp has announced that its AR platform Spark will no longer be available after January 14, 2025.
Meta announced the decision in a company blog post. The shuttering of Spark will make Meta’s third-party effects unavailable across its platforms. An FAQ provides details about the effects that will still be present once January 14 rolls around.
“This decision is part of our larger efforts to prioritize the products we believe will best serve the future needs of our consumers and business customers alike,” reads the post. “We are committed to making this transition as smooth as possible.”
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Spark has been available throughout Meta’s communities for five years, and the decision to axe the program caught many artists off guard. Irate effects creators took to a Spark forum to express their displeasure over the sudden announcement of the platform’s termination. Some of Meta’s critics noted that the cessation of Spark monetization will put them out of work.
“Over the past few years, we creators have invested money, knowledge, advertising, and an entire infrastructure to make this our livelihood,” said creator Douglas Costa in a forum post. “You can’t just abruptly end support for filters in such a simple and easy way — it’s a huge disrespect to us and also to the Facebook/Instagram users, most of whom continue using the platform because of these effects.”
Sadly, creators probably shouldn’t be too surprised about the Spark shutdown, since Meta has a long history of abrupt, poorly-communicated product decisions. We’re talking about a company that pivoted to video twice, removed the Facebook Gaming app shortly after investing millions in streamers, and changed its name to support its metaverse push — only to slowly limit support for that exact product. The chaotic Spark announcement fits right into Meta’s modus operandi.
Luckily, if effects creators don’t want to deal with Meta anymore, they can ply their trades on several other platforms. The AR boom that began a decade ago with games like Pokemon Go has spawned monetization programs on Snap and TikTok. Both of those platforms pay the creators of their most-used effects, so beleaguered developers looking for their next Spark have a few options in front of them.
