Meta‘s Instagram is trying to make itself a place for longer-form entertainment content from digital creators, including testing out video lengths of up to 90 minutes and letting users watch Reels and more on Apple TV. The moves are meant to position Instagram as a bigger potential competitor to YouTube. But for now, Instagram is still not planning a revenue-sharing program akin to YouTube’s that would compensate creators for sharing their work on the platform.
Instagram announced the test of the new features in (of course) a video shared Monday on the platform. Mosseri said that one of his concerns has been “how do we make sure that we keep Instagram not just about entertainment, but about connecting with friends.” But now, Mosseri has been sold on the need for Instagram to “lean into” long-form videos. The new Instagram Features (which it is testing in the U.S. with a small group of creators) allows longer horizontal videos to Instagram, in some cases up to 90 minutes long.
Creators can also share clips as Reels to help people discover a long-form feature video. And soon, Instagram Lives will show up beyond just a creator’s followers, to be discovered by new audiences in the Reels tab. Instagram also is planning to introduce a new feature that will let you use your phone as a remote control for playback of videos on TVs.
As for whether Instagram will introduce an ad-revenue share in the future, the Instagram spokesperson said “it’s too early to share a long-term monetization model, but we’re exploring ways for creators to earn from brands, fans and Instagram, including performance-based incentives. Over time, we think there will be compounding benefits for creators to tell new stories, reach new audiences, and find new partners, which should lead to many monetization opportunities.” Here’s a rundown of Instagram’s new features
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