Meta is known for ripping off competitor apps and making their features their own. Reels in Instagram is one such thing they copied over from TikTok. Instagram Reels have been so much popular in India, with the absence of TikTok. Now Instagram is testing a new feature that converts all videos posted in the platform to a Reels.
Instagram is now making EVERY video a Reelh/t @ChristinaSBG pic.twitter.com/YLRDhT1nw0June 30, 2022
The screenshot above reads “Video posts are now shared as reels”. As it is custom with Instagram tests, the feature will be available only to a select set of users. If you're part of the test group, you will get a pop-up window showing this message.
It can also be seen from the screenshot that the video editing tools from reels will be available for normal videos. And if your profile is public, the normal video you post will be shown to the public as a Reels video. Not only that, anyone can remix your video like a normal Reels video.
A spokesperson for Instagram has revealed this to Techcrunch, “We’re testing this feature as part of our efforts to simplify and improve the video experience on Instagram”
It is not clear if Instagram plans to make this change available widely or not. If it indeed becomes a permanent change, it poses various challenges for horizontal videos and the length of the videos.
Meta bets big on Reels
"We’re no longer just a square photo-sharing app", said Instagram Head Adam Mosseri last year. And Meta revealed that Reels makes up more than 20% of the time users spend on Instagram.
Also, the company merged IGTV videos and videos in feed to a single video format named Instagram Video. Now it looks like they're merging Instagram Video with Reels. All this means is that Meta is betting big on Reels, and Instagram would be more of a short video app, rather than photos and stories.
