Snapchat might finally be opening up its platform to 3rd party developers in a secret project known as “Snapkit.”
The details: Rumor has it that Snapchat is working on a developer kit which would allow third parties to access its signature camera. It’s also allegedly working on an option which would let users “log in with Snapchat” to other apps.
Up to now, Snapchat’s never opened its userbase to anyone besides Bitmoji. So far, Snapkit’s little more than a rumor, so we don’t know how much access Snapchat might give to devs. Still, it might breathe a little life back into Snapchat, which has been floundering under the onslaught of Instagram.
But wait, there’s more: Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel couldn’t resist taking a shot at Facebook, who are known for plundering his app’s features for new material. He said at this week’s Code Conference:
We’d appreciate it if they copied our data protection practices also. It’s important to remember that there was no Russian manipulation of data on Snapchat.
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…no Russian manipulation we know of, Spiegel. But anyway, if Snapchat does open itself up to third-party developers, that sounds like a tacit assurance that Snapchat wouldn’t fall victim to the same sorts of pitfalls that led to Facebook’s Cambridge Analytica scandal. Given that Snapchat isn’t known to collect as much user data as Facebook or the like, it might provide a good alternative for those who don’t want to create new login credentials.
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