Instagram’s IGTV Is a Genuine Threat to YouTube

YouTube might be the de facto video streaming platform right now, but as Yahoo painfully learned, those at the top are never guaranteed to hold that position forever. The most recent to challenge the Google service’s dominance is Instagram with IGTV. It’s basically where users of the social media platform can post high-quality videos in long form, and YouTube is worried.

It’s worth pointing out that posting videos on Instagram has been possible for a long time. However, users could only upload short clips. With IGTV, it’s now possible to post videos that are up to 10 minutes long for regular users. For bigger influencers, they can upload videos of up to one hour in length, Inverse reports.

According to Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom, unlimited video length is being planned for future release to all users. For now, the platform is basically just testing the waters.

Accounts on IGTV will also be treated separately from accounts on the regular Instagram app. However, they can still be attached and users on the regular platform can still subscribe to the IGTV account of their choosing.

There’s also the matter of actually monetizing IGTV, which Instagram has so far failed to provide details on. Specifics are scarce, but many are thinking that following YouTube’s lead with ads before or within videos.

Some content creators are also taking issue with the fact that they can only upload vertical shots of videos on the platform. Even with this fact, however, IGTV stands a strong chance at challenging YouTube in the mobile arena. By being more efficient and accessible to users, this platform could unseat Google’s own offering.

This could explain YouTube’s recent eagerness to take better care of its content creators, as the Financial Times reports. The platform is currently trying its best to help YouTubers sell merchandise to supplement their ad revenue.