Steve JobsSource: Rene Ritchie/iMore

What you need to know

  • New emails from the Epic Games vs Apple trial have revealed internal discussions over Facebook's demands for its iPad app in 2011.
  • It includes one note from Steve Jobs in which he referred to the social media company as 'Fecebook'.
  • Facebook wanted several features including apps within its own app.

New court documents in the Epic Games vs Apple trial have uncovered internal Apple discussions about Facebook and its iPad app from 2011, including one in which the late company founder referred to the social media giant as 'Fecebook'.

From CNBC:

Now, emails between three former Apple executives, including Steve Jobs, from 2011 show that a similar conflict between Apple and Facebook was likely part of the reason for a delay for the release of a Facebook app for iPads over a decade ago.

Apple's iPad came out in 2010, but Facebook didn't release an app for it until October 2011. Between those two dates, a Facebook engineer even quit in a public blog post, citing delays in the app's release partially because of a "strained relationship with Apple."

Emails from Scott Forstall, head of software at Apple, relayed Mark Zuckerberg's unhappiness that Facebook would not be able to include embedded apps on Facebook for iPad, with Forstall and Zuck bandying around a few compromises, including one which would let user posts in the news feed related to apps. The report continues:

Jobs, then CEO of Apple, replied from his iPad: "I agree — if we eliminate Fecebooks third proposal it sounds reasonable."

A and E are pretty close on the keyboard, but given the context, it seems fairly apparent Steve Jobs may have meant exactly what he said.