Facebook, You're Not Alone: 5 Accidental App Launches That Aren't Slingshot

Facebook abandoned its longtime "Move Fast and Break Things" motto in April, but that doesn't mean the company is completely accident-free.

Facebook jumped the gun on a product launch Monday, unveiling its new Snapchat-like messaging app Slingshot in multiple regions before pulling the app from the App Store entirely. The faux launch was an "accident" according to the company, claiming instead that the app will be "ready soon."

A premature app launch is often the result of a scheduling error by the developer, who has the ability to set a launch date for the app within iTunes. In the case of an iOS launch, if a date is set, but a specific region is not specified, the app will roll out, store by store, as the clock strikes midnight around the world. This is why accidental app launches often appear in Australia and New Zealand first, as did Slingshot. Read more...