It looks like Facebook has just acq-hired mobile video and image app developer Digital Staircase, according to a blog post on the startup’s site. According to Facebook, Digital Staircase’s team will be joining the social network but Facebook has not acquired any of the technology assets from the startup.
Digital Staircase has developed a number of apps for video recording, image editing and more. MovieCam, which is available as an iPad and iOS app, is a camcorder app that provides recording features like 8x digital zoom, pause-and-resume recording functionality, and contrast enhancement. The app also allows you to add 18 movie effects and filters while shooting video.
iPhone app StereoCam aids in the quick creation of stereo image pairs. A stereo image pair consists of two specially designed images that are placed side-by-side to allow viewers (employing an appropriate viewing technique) to see the depicted scene in full.
Another iOS app SmartSplice uses advanced graphics algorithms to improve the speed and ease of creating high-quality image selections and provides image filters and a way to create professional-looking image effects.
From the post, it appears that the development team may be adding some of these functionalities to Facebook itself. Unfortunately, Digital Staircase will be removing its apps from the Apple App Store.
Dear Digital Staircase customers, followers, and supporters,
Hard to believe that it’s been 3 years since we started Digital Staircase. As with any startup, there have been ups and downs, but we’ve always had a blast working with you all to create new graphics apps and tools that make the joy of visual computing accessible. We’re announcing today that we’re being acquired by Facebook to help bring these mobile innovations to a broader audience. Many things may change, but our dedication to immersive experiences will not.
In a couple weeks (around 12/05/2011), we will be closing down Digital Staircase as a standalone entity and will remove all iOS products from the Apple iTunes store. Those of you who own apps (MovieCam, SmartSplice, StereoCam, etc) will still be able to use them on your current device. Please look out for new innovations to be added to Facebook.
Thanks for all the support, and feel free to contact us at support@digitalstaircase.com for more suggestions, comments, and feedback. We’re always looking for ways to improve the user experience.
Thanks,
The Digital Staircase Team
