We have always strived to provide you with the best features in our social sharing plugin, making it easier for your website visitors to share your content across various social media platforms. However, we’ve recently made a tough decision to remove Facebook share counts from our plugin. Let me explain why.
Over the years, we’ve seen a trend where social media platforms have gradually removed the ability for plugins like ours to fetch and display share counts. For instance, Twitter once provided share counts but later restricted this feature, making it prohibitively expensive for small businesses like ours to access. As a result, many developers, including us, had to either remove share counts or depend on unreliable third-party services.
LinkedIn followed Twitter’s lead, removing share counts without offering an alternative solution.
Then there was Facebook, one of the final holdouts where we could still fetch share counts. However, the process grew more complicated over time. Facebook introduced a client authentication system, originally designed for far broader uses than we required. Developers typically use this level of access for actions like posting updates or accessing user data—far more than our modest need to retrieve share counts for display purposes.
Our goal was simple: to show share counts on buttons without delving into personal account details. Yet, Facebook’s mandatory authentication and annual checkups were tailored for applications with much deeper account integration. These checks, seemingly arbitrary and disconnected from our actual usage, added unnecessary layers of complexity to our operations.
During this period, Meta, Facebook’s parent company, embarked on a campaign they dubbed “the year of efficiency.” This initiative involved significant staff reductions, impacting nearly every department. The aftermath placed immense pressure on the remaining employees, who had to shoulder the increased workload. This downsizing likely contributed to the challenges we faced in the review process. With fewer staff to handle inquiries and a heightened focus on streamlining, our detailed explanations often went unnoticed. Our attempts to demonstrate compliance became a repetitive cycle, struggling to make headway in an environment strained by these efficiency measures.
In addition to navigating Facebook’s complex authentication and review processes, we also grappled with maintaining access to our developer accounts. When one of our developer’s Facebook accounts was hacked, a swift response couldn’t counterbalance the inadequate support and appeal mechanisms on Facebook, leaving us stranded without crucial developer tools. When hackers compromised an account and violated community guidelines, our appeals for recovery went unheard, devoid of any meaningful recourse. This lack of support, coupled with the procedural hurdles imposed by Facebook, significantly hampered our ability to continue working within their systems.
After careful consideration, we concluded that the effort to maintain Facebook’s share counts are no longer sustainable. It’s a tough decision, especially knowing how much some of you value this feature. But this change will allow us to focus on improving other aspects of our plugin, enhancing its performance, and reducing the stress on our team.
We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. We understand the value share counts brought to your experience, and it’s with a heavy heart that we remove this feature. However, we’re excited about the future and the opportunity to develop new, valuable features for you.
Thank you for your understanding and continued support.