93 Facts About Instagram

Instagram is an American photo and video sharing social networking service founded in 2010 by Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, and later acquired by American company Facebook Inc, now known as Meta Platforms.

Instagram was originally distinguished by allowing content to be framed only in a square aspect ratio of 640 pixels to match the display width of the iPhone at the time.

Instagram began development in San Francisco as Burbn, a mobile check-in app created by Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger.

In November 2012, Instagram launched website profiles, allowing anyone to see user feeds from a web browser with limited functionality, as well as a selection of badges, web widget buttons to link to profiles.

In March 2014, Instagram started to test and switch the technology to use Facebook Places.

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The platform previously had a beta version of Instagram, first released on November 21, 2013, for Windows Phone 8.

On May 11, 2016, Instagram revamped its design, adding a black-and-white flat design theme for the app's user interface, and a less skeuomorphistic, more abstract, "modern" and colorful icon.

Mosseri stated that this was intended to have users "worry a little bit less about how many likes they're getting on Instagram and spend a bit more time connecting with the people that they care about.

Also in July 2019, Instagram announced that it would implement new features designed to reduce harassment and negative comments on the service.

In October 2019, Instagram introduced a limit on the number of posts visible in page scrolling mode unless logged in.

In February 2021, Instagram began testing a new feature called Vertical Stories, said by some sources to be inspired by TikTok.

In March 2021, Instagram launched a new feature in which four people can go live at once.

Instagram announced that adults would not be allowed to message teens who don't follow them as part of a series of new child safety policies.

In May 2021, Instagram began allowing users in some regions to add pronouns to their profile page.

On March 1, 2021, Instagram launched a new feature named Instagram Live "Rooms" Let Four People Go Live Together.

In May 2021, Instagram announced a new accessibility feature for videos on Instagram Reels and Stories to allow creators to place closed captions on their content.

In January 2011, Instagram introduced hashtags to help users discover both photos and each other.

Instagram encourages users to make tags both specific and relevant, rather than tagging generic words like "photo", to make photographs stand out and to attract like-minded Instagram users.

In December 2017, Instagram began to allow users to follow hashtags, which display relevant highlights of the topic in their feeds.

In June 2012, Instagram introduced "Explore", a tab inside the app that displays popular photos, photos taken at nearby locations, and search.

The tab was later expanded again in November 2016 after Instagram Live launched to display an algorithmically curated page of the "best" Instagram Live videos currently airing.

In May 2017, Instagram updated the Explore tab to promote public Stories content from nearby places.

Instagram offers a number of photographic filters that users can apply to their images.

In February 2012, Instagram added a "Lux" filter, an effect that "lightens shadows, darkens highlights and increases contrast".

In November 2019, it was reported that Instagram had begun to pilot a new video feature known as "Reels" in Brazil, expanding to France and Germany afterwards.

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In July 2020, Instagram rolled out Reels to India after TikTok was banned in the country.

Instagram has recently introduced a reel button on home page.

In December 2013, Instagram announced Instagram Direct, a feature that lets users interact through private messaging.

In January 2017, Instagram launched skippable ads, where five-second photo and 15-second video ads appear in-between different stories.

In May 2017, Instagram expanded the augmented reality sticker feature to support face filters, letting users add specific visual features onto their faces.

In June 2017, Instagram revised its live-video functionality to allow users to add their live broadcast to their story for availability in the next 24 hours, or discard the broadcast immediately.

On December 5, 2017, Instagram introduced "Story Highlights", known as "Permanent Stories", which are similar to Instagram Stories, but don't expire.

Instagram's stated in an interview with The Wall Street Journal in September 2013 that the company should be ready to begin selling advertising by September 2014 as a way to generate business from a popular entity that had not yet created profit for its parent company.

In October 2013, Instagram announced that video and image ads would soon appear in feeds for users in the United States, with the first image advertisements displaying on November 1, 2013.

In June 2014, Instagram announced the rollout of ads in the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, with ads starting to roll out that autumn.

In March 2015, Instagram announced it would implement "carousel ads, " allowing advertisers to display multiple images with options for linking to additional content.

Instagram launched carousel image ads in October 2015, and video carousel ads in March 2016.

In May 2016, Instagram launched new tools for business accounts, including business profiles, analytics and the ability to promote posts as ads.

The new analytics page, known as Instagram Insights, allowed business accounts to view top posts, reach, impressions, engagement and demographic data.

In November 2018, Instagram added the ability for business accounts to add product links directing users to a purchase page or to save them to a "shopping list.

In March 2020, via a blog post, Instagram announced that they are making major moderation changes in order to decrease the flow of disinformation, hoaxes and fake news regarding COVID-19 on its platform, "We'll remove COVID-19 accounts from account recommendations, and we are working to remove some COVID-19 related content from Explore unless posted by a credible health organization.

In June 2021, Instagram launched a native affiliate marketing tool creators can use to earn commissions based on sales.

Instagram has developed and released three stand-alone apps with specialized functionality.

In November 2015, Instagram announced that effective June 1, 2016, it would end "feed" API access to its platform in order to "maintain control for the community and provide a clear roadmap for developers" and "set up a more sustainable environment built around authentic experiences on the platform", including those oriented towards content creation, publishers, and advertisers.

On December 16, 2019, Facebook announced it would expand its fact checking programs towards Instagram, by using third-party fact-checkers organizations false information is able to be identified, reviewed and labeled as false information.

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Instagram said the algorithm was designed so that users would see more of the photos by users that they liked, but there was significant negative feedback, with many users asking their followers to turn on post notifications in order to make sure they see updates.

Instagram wrote a tweet to users upset at the prospect of the change, but did not back down, nor provide a way to change it back, which they re-affirmed in 2020.

Instagram later clarified the company would introduce two modes: a classic chronological feed and a version of it that would let users pick "favorite" users whose posts would be shown at the top in chronological order while other posts would be mixed in below.

Since 2017, Instagram has employed the ability to reduce the prominence of accounts it believes may be generating non-genuine engagement and spam (including excessive use of unneeded hashtags), preventing posts from appearing in search results and in the app's Explore section.

Instagram caused the userbase to fall into outrage with the December 2018 update.

In November 2020, Instagram replaced the activity feed tab with a new "Shop" tab, moving the activity feed to the top.

Also in 2020, Instagram rolled out a feature titled "suggested posts", which adds posts from accounts Instagram thinks a user would like to such user's feed.

On June 23, 2021, Instagram announced a test change to the "suggested posts" feature.

Instagram will put suggested posts ahead of posts from people that the user is following in the Instagram feed, citing positive reception as the reason for this change.

What's more, more frequent Instagram use has negative associations for people who follow more strangers, but positive associations for people who follow fewer strangers, with social comparison and depressive symptoms.

Facebook has known for years that its Instagram app is harmful to a number of teenagers, according to research seen by The Wall Street Journal, but the company concealed the knowledge from lawmakers.

Internal Facebook presentations seen by the Journal in 2021 show that Instagram is toxic to a sizable percentage of its users, particularly teenage girls.

Instagram told Forbes that its research is "kept confidential to promote frank and open dialogue and brainstorming internally.

Instagram stated it was looking into concerns raised by the regulators and parents.

Multiple studies confirmed that Instagram usage is associated with body surveillance and body self-image.

Comments related to appearance on Instagram are leading to higher dissatisfactions with one's body.

Research shows that Instagram browsing predicts social comparison, which generates FOMO, and FOMO can ultimately lead to depression.

Girls with an Instagram account differed from girls without an account in terms of skipping meals.

Instead, girls with an Instagram account differed from girls without an account in that they used a stricter exercise schedule.

Instagram is one of the most popular social media channels for sharenting.

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Instagram has published content to help users in need to get support.

Instagram-based activism has been criticized and dismissed for being performative, reductionist, and overly focused on aesthetics.

Instagram marketing is an effective way to advertise a product, given that a picture is said to speak a thousand words.

Recently Instagram has come up with an option for users to apply for a verified account badge; however, this does not guarantee every user who applies will get the verified blue tick.

In contrast, the level of agreement expressed in creating Instagram posts was lower, which demonstrates that Instagram's emphasis on visual communication is widely accepted by young people in social communication.

Instagram was the runner-up for "Best Mobile App" at the 2010 TechCrunch Crunchies in January 2011.

Instagram won "Best Locally Made App" in the SF Weekly Web Awards in September 2011.

In 2015, Instagram was named No 1 by Mashable on its list of "The 100 best iPhone apps of all time, " noting Instagram as "one of the most influential social networks in the world.

In 2019, Instagram began to test the hiding of like counts for posts made by its users, with the feature later made available to everyone.

In June 2017, Instagram announced that it would automatically attempt to filter offensive, harassing, and "spammy" comments by default.

Instagram said in a statement that it had "fixed the bug swiftly" and was running an investigation.

On December 17, 2012, Instagram announced a change to its Terms of Service policy, adding the following sentence:.

On December 20, Instagram announced that the advertising section of the policy would be reverted to its original October 2010 version.

Columbia Law School professor Tim Wu has given public talks explaining that Facebook's 2012 purchase of Instagram was a felony.

An Instagram spokesperson apologized and told The Guardian that "We are sorry this happened – it's not the experience we want someone to have.

In May 2021, The Washington Post published a report detailing a "black market" of unlicensed employment agents luring migrant workers from Africa and Asia into indentured servitude as maids in Persian Gulf countries, and using Instagram posts containing their personal information to market them.

Instagram deleted 200 accounts that had been reported by the Post, and a spokesperson stated that Instagram took this activity "extremely seriously", disabled 200 accounts found by the Post to be engaging in these activities, and was continuing to work on systems to automatically detect and disable accounts engaging in human exploitation.

In July 2022, Instagram announced a set of updates which immediately received widespread backlash from its userbase.

Instagram has been the subject of criticism due to users publishing images of drugs they are selling on the platform.

Instagram has a clear set of rules about what is and isn't allowed on the site.

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People can't buy things on Instagram, we are simply a place where people share photos and videos.

In October 2013, Instagram deleted the account of Canadian photographer Petra Collins after she posted a photo of herself in which a very small area of pubic hair was visible above the top of her bikini bottom.

Similar incidents occurred in January 2015, when Instagram deleted Australian fashion agency Sticks and Stones Agency's account because of a photograph including pubic hair sticking out of bikini bottoms, and March 2015, when artist and poet Rupi Kaur's photos of menstrual blood on clothing were removed, prompting a rallying post on her Facebook and Tumblr accounts with the text "We will not be censored", gaining over 11, 000 shares.

On October 30, 2020, Instagram temporarily removed the "recent" tab on hashtag pages to prevent the spread of misinformation regarding the 2020 United States presidential election.

Instagram has been blocked by China following the 2014 Hong Kong protests as many confrontations with police and incidents occurring during the protests were recorded and photographed.

Instagram is popular among Iranians because it is seen as an outlet for freedom and a "window to the world.

In July 2021, Instagram temporarily censored videos with the phrase "death to Khamenei".

Instagram was the fourth most downloaded mobile app of the 2010s.