Instagram’s just-launched Stories feature isn’t the only way in which the Facebook-owned platform is seeking to mimic Snapchat. Instagram unveiled today a new video-curating feature within its Explore section that will enable users to discover content based on different events happening around the world.
“This channel collects the best videos from concerts, sporting events, and more so you can feel like you’re in the front row,” Instagram said, using an Adele concert as an example. “Like the rest of Explore, this new channel is personalized for you and highlights events you might like.” The Event Channels feature is currently available in the United States, Instagram said, though a global rollout is planned.
The prospect of curating video from different events around the world in real-time is a space that Snapchat has also sought to own with its Live Stories feature, or compilations by Snapchat of user-generated content about events, for instance, like the Rio Olympics. Twitter is also looking at a similar capability with its Moments feature, which it recently opened up to influencers, publishers, and brands, and which enables users to compile a series of disparate Tweets, photos, and videos into a larger narrative.
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Instagram already recommends personalized videos for users based around specific topics and interests — such as comedy, baking, skateboarding, and hip-hop — having unveiled Topic and Interest Channels within Explore in June. However, Recode reports, curating real-time events is much harder to do and will be accomplished using an algorithm. Instagram staffers will only get involved if a post gets flagged.
Instagram has dipped its toes into event-related video curation in the past when, last October, the company launched a feed for Halloween-related content, though it was compiled by employees.
