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'Pokémon Go' makers explain why they blocked third-party apps

The developers say third-party services were 'interfering with our ability to maintain quality of service for our users'.

Gotta catch 'em all. It's the itch you just can't stop scratching -- and one where a wave of unofficial Pokémon Go apps and web-based maps helped clue you in on exactly where those Jynx were hiding. Unfortunately, alongside an app update last weekend, the team behind the app shut down data access to third-party services like PokeVision. It released a statement to users on its Facebook page, saying these services were "interfering with our ability to maintain quality of service for our users and to bring Pokémon Go to users around the world." It added that the huge number of users has had an effect on its roll-out plans.

The company says it's removed its "3-step" Pokémon detection legend "in order to improve upon the underlying design". The team is working to improve the feature, which means it should find its way back into the app at some point. Niantic also apologized for not tweeting so much during the roll-out of the app, saying that it'll try to do better in communicating what's going down in the future.