In the last few days, Instagram has made a number of updates to its apps that include creator focused features for IGTV and finally adding browser support for Instagram Live videos. The updates to IGTV will massively help creators on the platform, incentivising them to use IGTV more as the platform of their choice.
Starting with IGTV, Instagram is clearly interested in expanding the platform to make it easier for content creators to be discovered. The IGTV app is getting a new tab in the bottom called “Discover” where Instagram will show new and relevant IGTV content. This will help users find content faster and encourage them to use the app more. Another change that is made to the homepage is that Instagram will always feature a content creator up top, which will be tailored according to the user’s interests.
They are also introducing a change to the way IGTV videos can be shared on Stories. Instead of sharing a freeze frame, Instagram will now allow creators to share a 15 second clip of the IGTV video as a Story. This should improve the click-through rate by quite a bit and keep viewers engaged on the app. Along with, IGTV will now get a hands-free recording mode too.
With regard to Instagram Live, they are finally adding the ability to view Live videos on the web. Instagram is slowly bringing its app’s features to the web, shifting its ideology of being only a smartphone-focused app. With the ability to view Live Videos on the web, it should make it much easier for users to view longer streams, which can be tiring when viewing on a phone. The interface is also better as it shows the live comments on the side of the video instead on overlaying it on top like on the phone, which used to be annoying sometimes.