Instagram Launching Snapchat-Like ‘Stories’ for New Sharing Options

BY Evan Selleck

Published 2 Aug 2016

Instagram Android Stories

Instagram is one of the most popular social networks out there, but competition still drives the company’s efforts, and Snapchat is one of the biggest competitors the platform has.

As such, it’s probably not too surprising to see the platform announcing a Snapchat-like feature, called “Stories.” Instagram made the new feature official today on its blog, and details how the new feature will work. It will allow Instagram users to collect and publish photos and videos to create a story, to which they can add to throughout the day as they see fit.

The content will only be available for a limited time, though: 24 hours, to be specific, before it disappears. That means it won’t clog up a user’s feed.

“Today, we’re introducing Instagram Stories, a new feature that lets you share all the moments of your day, not just the ones you want to keep on your profile. As you share multiple photos and videos, they appear together in a slideshow format: your story.

With Instagram Stories, you don’t have to worry about overposting. Instead, you can share as much as you want throughout the day — with as much creativity as you want. You can bring your story to life in new ways with text and drawing tools. The photos and videos will disappear after 24 hours and won’t appear on your profile grid or in feed.”

Interestingly enough, Instagram’s CEO, Kevin Systrom, did say that Snapchat does “deserve all the credit,” when speaking to TechCrunch. But he does add it’s “not about who invented something.”

Instagram’s Stories will begin rolling out for Android users over the next few weeks.

[via TechCrunch; Instagram]