Instagram launches IGTV, the new long-form video app that could take down YouTube

Yesterday marked a huge day for Instagram, and possibly the beginning of the demise of YouTube. At an entertaining launch event in San Francisco, which began with a choreographed performance starring some of Instagram’s biggest names, those behind the app announced IGTV.

What’s IGTV? Instagram’s CEO Kevin Systrom explained at the event that it’s a new app for watching long-form, full-screen, vertical video, laid out on the platform to match up with, “how you actually use your phone.” You can catch a glimpse in this promotional video they uploaded to Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BkQYhmdj2qA/?utm_source=ig_embed

So what makes a video long-form? While Instagram Stories are limited to just 15 seconds, with videos in the main feed extending to just over a minute, videos on IGTV can be up to ten minutes, while bigger accounts can post content that lasts up to an hour.

This means you can view everything from comedy skits to DIY projects to music videos to vlogs from your favorite Instagram creators. Some popular Instagrammers will even be creating series for the platform, though according to The Verge, they will not be paid by Instagram.

Driving this launch is the idea that more people now spend time watching content on their phones rather than on their television sets. In fact, this shift has been so extreme that mobile video will account for 78 percent of total mobile data traffic by 2121.

“Video on mobile is clunky or unnatural… it’s time for video to move forward and evolve,” said Systrom during the launch event.

While the IGTV app is a standalone app, separate from your Instagram app, its design mirrors the ease of Instagram itself. In the app, viewers can easily navigate through the tabs “for you,” “following” and “popular.” Users also have the option of continuing to watch previously started videos.

At the same time, if you’re reluctant to download yet another app — at least at first — you can still watch IGTV-generated videos from within the original Instagram app.

While YouTube is still the main place to go for high-quality video content online, that might change depending on how successful IGTV is at redirecting people’s attention to their own creators and original series content.

Another interesting thing to note? Anyone can be a creator with IGTV by uploading a vertical video through the app or web. It’s that easy.

Are you excited about this new feature and app?