Instagram’s IGTV Competes With YouTube, Finds Takers in Influencers, Vloggers, As Well As Publishers

IGTV Allows Users To Generate Up To 60-Minute Long Videos, Allowing Content Providers To Up Their Video Content

Popstar and actor Jaden Smith just released his five-track-long new album titled ‘Electric’ on IGTV! And we are now beginning to get a hang of this new platform by Instagram.

Last month, Instagram announced that it has reached 1 billion users. The company also announced “a new app for watching long-form, vertical video,” i.e. Instagram TV (IGTV). IGTV is available as an added feature in the app, as well as a stand-alone app.

“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,” informed Kevin Systrom, Co-Founder & CEO, Instagram, on the company’s website.

Systrom added that IGTV is easy-to-use for anyone with an Instagram account, “We’ve made it simple, too. Just like turning on the TV, IGTV starts playing as soon as you open the app. You don’t have to search to start watching content from people you already follow on Instagram and others you might like based on your interests. You can swipe up to discover more — switch between “For You,” “Following,” “Popular” and “Continue Watching.” You can also like, comment and send videos to friends in Direct.”

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Will it replace YouTube?

With influencers already using the platform for monetary benefits, through Carousel Content and Instagram Stories, IGTV only adds one more avenue for social influencer-generated content; a very different one than Google’s YouTube.

In her review of IGTV, Josie Rhodes Cook writes, “You could make your IGTV channel resemble traditional television by creating an hour-long series and uploading videos once a week. Or half-hour-long sitcoms — pick your poison, really. The possibilities are endless.”

Bryan Lanning, who runs his YouTube channel Daily Bumps, was quoted by New York Times, saying that he viewed IGTV as a new market to explore, one where it would it be easier to gain a following of younger people. “We’re going to see what kind of brands are hopping on board, what the monetization policies are,” he said. “The cool thing, all of that has to be established for the first time just like it was with YouTube.”

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News, views and much more

A week after it was launched, publishers were already posting a mix of live-stream content, repurposed vertical videos as well as original features.

Vogue posted new versions of its “Beauty Secrets” series with actor Lili Reinhart, alongside a video of Kylie Jenner trying out her own makeup products. One of BBC’s video follows a woman’s struggle with polycystic ovary syndrome, which had more than 60,000 views and 60 comments within a week, in retrospect, BBC Stories’ in-feed Instagram videos get 1,000 views on an average.

Sam Forsdick, in his article, noted that early adopters of Instagram TV include BBC News, ITV News Vice, The Economist and so on. “All are seeking to capture a portion of the social media sites billion users, the majority of which are in the 18-29 age demographic,” Forsdick wrote.

The same report quotes Ciara Riordan, Deputy Social News Editor, BBC News, saying, “We’re looking to give our followers a longer, more immersive version of stories we know have appeal on Instagram already. Stories that cover human interest, diversity, people helping each other out, first-person story-telling, big news stories and exclusive BBC News interviews and features.”

IGTV might just turn out to be the millennial answer for traditional TV. Let’s wait and watch.

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