Highlights:
- Instagram has replaced the Explore tab with Reels in the app
- Instagram earlier started testing this Reels tab in India but now the feature has been officially rolled out
Facebook-owned photo-sharing application Instagram has replaced TikTok in India as it introduced “Reels” and has a separate section for this feature in the app. Earlier, Instagram began the testing of the special Reels tab in India and now it has been officially rolled out to the users in India.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Instagram Adam Mosseri announced the same as he tweeted, “Today we’re launching a separate tab for Reels in India given the momentum we’re seeing in the country.”
In the latest User Interface of the Instagram application, users can see that the Explore tab, which used to be next to the Home button at the bottom of the screen, has now been replaced by the new Reels button.
The Explore button has now been moved next to the DM (Direct Message) icon on the top right corner of the app.
Now when a user clicks on the Reels tab, he/ she will only get to see the short videos and nothing else whereas the Explore button would continue to function the way it used to in the past, only the button placement has changed, no change to its usage has been made.
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Director and Head of Partnerships at Facebook India, Manish Chopra, talked about this new feature which was added to Instagram and said, “The dedicated tab is in response to the community’s amazing response to Reels, as it’ll help people discover new creators more easily,” he added, “We’re excited by what the community in India is creating on Reels. From Virat Kohli and Katrina Kaif to Kolkata based Chef Kriti Bhoutika, we’re seeing a wide variety of public figures and creators using it.”
Chopra also said, “We are currently focused on making Reels a great experience for people, but we are planning to integrate more tools in the future. We’re engaging with public figures and creators to use their creativity and use Reels while expressing themselves around moments and festivals, like independence day, rakhi, Ganesh Utsav and Onam,”.
Initially, Reels was seen by the Indian users back in July, a couple, of days after the Indian government banned the short video platform TikTok in the country. Apart from India, Reels has also been rolled out to the users in Brazil, France, and Germany by Facebook and will later roll out to 50 other countries including the United States of America.
For the people who are not versed with the feature, Reels is a platform for short video creation but unlike TikTok, it is not a standalone app and is available within Instagram.
By using Reels, users can record and edit 15-second multi-clip videos with audio, effects, and new creative tools and share them on their Instagram feed.
