Dear Students, just a quick note – the Facebook Groups app for Android and iPhone will be gone Sep 1st 2017.
I use the app, so I’m grumpy. But hey, we aren’t paying for it.
The alternative I’ve currently found is to bookmark the hidden groups newsfeed.
https://www.facebook.com/?sk=groups
and in the Facebook main app
fb://groups/gridtab
I’m guessing the Facebook API still lets you use other solutions like Hootsuite, come Sep 1?
In the good news, it’s not because Facebook aren’t interested in groups anymore – with Group analytics/insights/measurements, Group Admin badges and connecting Group communities to Facebook Business Pages, Groups aren’t going anywhere.
Anyway, hands up if you remember that groups used to have subforums?
The below is from Facebook:
Thank you for using the Facebook Groups app
Facebook Groups builds community and brings people together in personal, practical, and powerful ways. In 2014, we launched the Facebook Groups app for iOS and Android to help people access and share more easily with all of their groups. Over the years many of you have used the standalone app and provided feedback. Your comments have been instrumental to the development of features like Discover, which we piloted in the Facebook Groups app and have improved upon in the main Facebook app to make finding relevant groups easier.
Earlier this summer at the Facebook Communities Summit, we reaffirmed our commitment to groups with the announcement of our new company mission centered around building communities and introducing several new features, including Group Insights, to help group admins grow and strengthen their communities. Since then, the groups team has been working on additional tools to improve the overall groups experience and we’ve found that we can do more with and for the community by investing in the main Facebook app.
Because we’re focusing on groups in the main Facebook app and on facebook.com, we are discontinuing the Facebook Groups app for iOS and Android. This means you won’t be able to log into the Facebook Groups app after September 1, 2017. All of your groups from this app will be available in the main Facebook app, where you can continue to connect with all your communities.
We appreciate your understanding while we work on making groups even better. Thank you again for using the Facebook Groups app. We look forward to continuing our work to deliver experiences that help you connect with people about the things that matter to you.
– The Facebook Groups team
