Facebook May Be Breaking Apple App Store Rules

Facebook Inc (NASDAQ: FB) may violate the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) online store guidelines, according to VentureBeat contributor Sean Killian of Enola Labs.

The potential conflict came from Facebook's plans to offer downloads of third-party apps through its Facebook Messenger platform.

As Killian pointed out, however, the App Store Review Guidelines insist that "Apps that display Apps other than your own for purchase or promotion in a manner similar to or confusing with the App Store will be rejected."

Whether Apple can enforce its rules on Facebook remained a question.

"The answer is, unfortunately for Apple, that Facebook and its array of incredibly popular products simply aren't like other applications," Killian noted.

As examples of Facebook's popularity, the article cited the company's latest numbers from its recent developer conference:

1. "3.5 billion app installs came from Facebook last year."

2. "90 percent of the top 100 apps on iOS and Android have Facebook integration."

3. "1.4 billion people use the core Facebook app; 700 million in Groups; 700 million in WhatsApp; 600 million in Messenger; 300 million in Instagram per month."

4. "Facebook apps dominated the list of top four app downloads from the App store in 2014: Facebook Messenger, Facebook, WhatsApp Messenger, Instagram."

Related Link: Wall Street Still Likes Facebook After F8

The popularity of Facebook could require Apple to revise its guidelines as Killian concluded, "The focus now should be on how each platform can work together in a way that supports their users and the experience they desire within each platform and the ecosystem as a whole."

Facebook recently traded at $82.91, down 0.34 percent.

Apple traded at $125.40, down 0.76 percent.