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The OG App, an ad- and Reels-free Instagram clone, is pulled from the App Store

The OG App, an ad- and Reels-free Instagram clone, is pulled from the App Store

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The OG App promised an Instagram experience without Reels, recommendations, and ads. Meta says it’s taking “all appropriate enforcement actions.”

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Instagram logo with geometric design background
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

An app appealing to the nostalgia of an Instagram without Reels and recommendations was pulled from the App Store just as developers say it was taking off.

The OG App allows users to log in with their Instagram account and browse without ads, recommendations, and Reels — increasingly obtrusive features on Instagram that have caused widespread pushback from users. The app’s name captures the same sentiment: many users miss the old Instagram.

But just a day after the app officially launched, it was pulled from the App Store on Wednesday, Engadget reports. On Twitter, the OG App creators said the app got 10,000 downloads and was climbing the rankings before it was removed.

It’s not clear whether Apple removed the OG App at the request of Meta — Apple didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. Meta has policies against clone sites — or third-party sites that duplicate content — and has filed lawsuits against people who have created clones.

Meta spokesperson Ryan Brack told The Verge that the app violates policies and the company is taking “all appropriate enforcement actions” but didn’t specify what that included. The OG App creators also claimed on Twitter that team members’ personal Instagram and Facebook profiles were banned. Hardik Patil, one of the OG App founders, told The Verge that they’re still assessing next steps and haven’t been in contact with Meta.

“Users deserve the right to control what they consume, and OG will continue to defend and fight for that right,” Patil said in an email.

The home feed of the OG App shows user posts, stories, and custom feeds on a page that closely resembles Instagram.
The OG App gave users the option to remove ads, suggested posts, and Reels.
Image: The OG App

The appetite for something like The OG App speaks to the growing frustration many Instagram users have with the platform’s recent pivots as it attempts to compete with TikTok. More short-form video and an influx of recommended content drove users to plead for a return to a bygone version of Instagram — something that looks a lot like the OG App. And though Meta is likely right that the app violated rules against clone sites, the tougher pill to swallow for fans of the OG App is that this version of Instagram is not coming back any time soon.

Update September 29th 4:35PM ET: Updated to include comment from Hardik Patil, one of the founders of the OG App.