As you may have already figured out, Instagram has launched private messaging this month, calling it Instagram Direct.
It lets users send a photo up to 15 people without publicly broadcasting that photo to their entire following. Recipients can like the photo and participate in live chat underneath it.
So, what do we think?
Well, on one side of the argument it makes a lot of sense for Instagram to launch a private messaging feature. Competitors like Snapchat and Twitter are focusing in on direct messaging as a way of communication while Facebook and Instagram get left behind in public broadcast mode.
However, Instagram may not have differentiated itself enough from competitors to get users excited about a feature they have been using elsewhere.
There’s also the school of thought that the smartphone itself is the do-it-all machine, and apps are to have their own individual use cases without trying to do too much.
We split down the middle on this once, but agreed on one thing: Instagram Direct isn’t original at all.
