Instagram has introduced a new privacy setting that puts all new and existing underage accounts into auto-private mode by default.
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Instagram users will now be able to watch Reels short-form videos on a larger screen.
meta announced Tuesday that the company will begin testing its Instagram for TV app in the United States. Amazon The Fire TV streaming device highlights the photo-sharing app’s efforts to compete with TikTok and YouTube and become the dominant video platform beyond smartphones.
The Instagram for TV app features the company’s TikTok-like Reels videos, which are often produced by individual creators to be viewed, shared and algorithmically recommended by users on the platform.
Tessa Lyons, Instagram’s vice president of products, told CNBC in an interview that Meta plans to expand the new TV app to other device manufacturers, but declined to name them. He said the company is now prioritizing “great experiences” over immediate expansion of its huge TV advertising business.
“We think there’s probably still a lot of work to do to make sure we’re delivering content that people love on mobile in a way that feels really meaningful to them and designed for television,” Lyons said. “In 2026, we’ll focus more on getting it to more people and more devices, and eventually we’ll start thinking more about monetization.”
Reels shown in the TV app “will continue to be vertical video,” Lyons said, rather than being reformatted to fit the TV’s more horizontal design.
Lyons said the new Instagram TV app will stick to a short format, showing Reels videos “three minutes or less.” Meta previously debuted another video-only variant of Instagram called IGTV in 2018, allowing people to upload long-form videos. The company shut down its mobile app in 2022, when it began pushing Reels heavily as TikTok’s popularity skyrocketed.
“Eventually, we’re going to consider whether we want to move into longer content,” Lyons said.
Users of the app can see a selection of Reels organized into channels based on specific interests, such as sports, music, travel, and other topics.
Customers can add five separate Instagram accounts to one shared TV-only Instagram account, but the company says it will “apply content standards that are appropriate for a broad audience,” which will likely mean that Reels containing videos related to drugs, alcohol, or sexual content will no longer be recommended to teens.
Attention: There is no way to link meta to interest rates, says Jim Cramer.
