On June 30th, Head of Instagram Adam Mosseri posted a video announcing some changes on the platform. Among many other things, the standout quote to hit headlines was announcing that Instagram is no longer just a photo-sharing app. The industry’s take? Instagram wants to be TikTok. Watch Adam Mosseri’s Video here before you read more!
Instagram’s four new focus areas are: Creators, Shopping, Messaging, and Video. But what does that mean for the platform? Let’s check in on the history of Instagram.
Instagram’s History
Instagram was initially conceived as an app called Burbn, allowing users to check-in, post plans, and share photos of whiskey or bourbon. It took the location sharing aspect of Four-Square, and added a photo-sharing element to it. After the first round of VC funding, IG’s team studied other photo-sharing apps popular at the time. They ultimately stripped Burbn down to photos, commenting, and liking, and rebranded it as Instagram, a combination of instant and telegram. The initial product was a minimalist app design requiring as few actions from the user as possible. Instagram launched to the public on October 6th, 2010. The app hit 25,000 users on the first day and 1 million users before Christmas.
Fast-forwarding to March 2012, Instagram had grown to 27 million users. They continued to release other versions of the app for Android, website, tablets, and more. In April 2012, Instagram was purchased by Facebook for $1 billion in cash and stock.
Read the rest of this post on ExplorerMedia.co!
What do you think of these announced changes with Instagram? How will they affect your business or brand? Let me know!
