App.net Debuts ‘Passport’ iOS App, Focuses On Third-Party Developers

The team at App.net has released ‘Passport’, a brand new iOS app that was announced by App.net founder Dalton Caldwell.

According to Caldwell the new app allows users to find and follow other App.net accounts and discover and download other apps via the App.net framework.

Users can not post using the app and they can’t use messaging capabilities via Passport. App.net developers intentionally left off certain features in the hopes that they can push users towards other developer apps created for the network. Essentially App.net’s Passport is a gateway and not a client.

According to a blog post the Passport iOS app now offers developers a new feature for any app they choose to create:

An additional benefit of the Passport app for 3rd-party developers is a new Authentication SDK which makes it easy to seamlessly integrate App.net login/signup functionality into any app.

Check out App.net Passport and let us know what you think.

The biggest advantage from Passport? It marks the first time that users can sign up to App.net without an invitation. Caldwell says the wide-open registration is an experiment and not necessarily a change in App.net user registration policy.