UPDATE: Instagram Announces IGTV, Long-Form Video Platform
Taking on YouTube.
UPDATE: Instagram has officially unveiled its long-form video platform titled IGTV. The company has provided tidbits of information concerning the app:
Mobile-first: IGTV is built for how you naturally use and hold your phone, so videos are full screen and vertical.
Simple to use: It starts playing as soon as you open the app, so you don’t have to search to get started.
Quality content: IGTV is built on the Instagram network and creators are the channels; so you can watch people you already follow on Instagram and discover others.
Watch the promotional video above and download IGTV/update your Instagram app when the new platform begins today.
After rumors of 60-minute videos emerged earlier this month, Instagram is now reportedly set to launch the feature this week. Titled “IGTV,” the new hub will support videos ranging from 15 seconds to 60 minutes, well above the current one minute cap that currently exists on the app.
According to reports, Instagram has been meeting with influencers and online content creators to encourage them to create longer videos. The desired videos are believed to be more similar to YouTube vlogs than normal Instagram posts, which could mean that the move is an attempt by Facebook and Instagram to take on the Google-owned video platform. The type of creative approached has been “web celebrities” who specialize in mobile-produced content, rather than traditional publishers and TV studios. Over time, these creators will set the tone and style of what “IGTV” becomes. The news is set to be announced today, with Instagram events happening simultaneously across the world.
Instagram also recently dropped its controversial function telling people if you had screenshot their story.
