You may have noticed a brand new button at the top of your Instagram. See it? It’s that little TV-shaped button. That’s Instagram’s new TV platform called IGTV.

What is IGTV?

It’s TV, and an app. On Instagram.

Instagram recently announced that they were releasing a new app called IGTV that will feature full-screen, hour-long videos created by the accounts that you follow.

I quote:

…we’re announcing our most exciting feature to date: IGTV, a new app for watching long-form, vertical video from your favorite Instagram creators, like LaurDIY posting her newest project or King Bach sharing his latest comedy skit. While there’s a stand-alone IGTV app, you’ll also be able to watch from within the Instagram app so the entire community of one billion can use it from the very start. — Instagram

IGTV is different in a few ways. First, it’s built for how you actually use your phone, so videos are full screen and vertical. Also, unlike on Instagram, videos aren’t limited to one minute. Instead, each video can be up to an hour long.

What does this mean for YouTube? Big Competition?

Well, popular YouTube content creator MKBHD doesn’t think so.

Brownlee is doubtful that IGTV as it exists today is ready to be a direct competitor to YouTube. Instead, platforms like Twitch or IGTV offer alternatives to specific aspects of the platform, whether it’s streaming or long-form video. If YouTube is the all-purpose platform where creators showcase their most polished work, IGTV might be the better suited to more personal, on-the-fly content. “There are a lot of things [IGTV] doesn’t do still that YouTube does,” he says. “It’s competing with a part of what YouTube does by focusing in a different way.” Its emphasis on vertical video also poses a challenge for online creators. “Every camera shoots horizontal, right?” says Brownlee. “So we’re all super used to framing things with lots of horizontal room. — The Verge

IGTV will be rolling out globally over the next few weeks on Android and iOS.  I personally cannot wait to use this feature! 🙂

Zee

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