Facebook hopes a new logo will distract you from its problems

The rumors were true: Facebook has decided that a rebranding is in order. The company has introduced a new corporate logo and brand strategy that it hopes will more clearly distinguish Facebook the company and its individual apps. There's not much to say about the logo in question, as it's just "Facebook" written in a a plain (if modern-looking) font. However, the new style theoretically makes the ownership clearer when you see "from Facebook" placed in products from Instagram, WhatsApp, Oculus and others.

The Facebook app will keep its own branding despite the new styling. You can expect the new look to surface over the course of the "coming weeks."

This is strictly a cosmetic change. Many of the functional integrations between these products took place years ago. It's certainly not going to address more serious complaints like the willingness to run false ads from politicians, ongoing privacy issues or the possible financial effects of its cryptocurrency. In that light, it may feel like more of a distraction than anything. It's still likely to be one of the more conspicuous changes to Facebook in a while -- just not the most meaningful.