Facebook '˜taking legal action' against Northampton-developed app due to similarity to Instagram
Social media giant Facebook, which owns the picture sharing site Instagram, has reportedly taken legal action against the owner of a free app developed by a Northampton company because it includes the word '˜gram'.
LitterGram, which allows people to report incidents of fly-tipping, was launched last year by businessman Danny Lucas.
The app was developed by Northampton company All Things Code and is already being used by councils to provide a ‘litter map’ of different locations in the UK.
However, Mr Lucas has received a letter from Facebook, owner of Instagram, instructing him to change the app’s name due the use of “gram”.
He has responded with a personal plea to Facebook’s founder Mark Zuckerberg, asking for him to stop the lawyers and work together to support LitterGram.
In the video posted on YouTube, Mr Lucas states: “My understanding is that Mark fights and cares for causes such as ours, which is why I have been so surprised and disappointed by his legal team’s action.
“I created LitterGram on the back of a posted telegram that I used to notify the authorities of litter in their area.
“When my approach proved effective I turned the concept into an app for a wider audience to get on board. This is not a financially driven business but a free way for everybody to tackle an ever growing problem.
“We are in no way a threat to a huge organisation such as Facebook.”