Instagram is on a roll these days and is coming up with back to back new features. Amidst the lockdown, Instagram came up with features like Reels and Instagram Guides to get the users hooked to the platform, and now, it is back with another new update. Instagram has launched an automatic IGTV captions feature for users.
Video content is getting a lot of traction lately, and all platforms have started focusing majorly on how to implement it in their ecosystem. Instagram, which was originally introduced as a photo-sharing platform, has understood the obsession and demand of the current user base and knows that video-based content is the future.
Instagram is coming up with multiple new features to adapt to the demands of the upcoming generation, that focuses majorly on video formats on the platform.
Image source: Google
What is Instagram IGTV?
Instagram IGTV feature is a video feature embedded in the app, which enables creators and users to make long, shareable videos. The feature was launched in 2018 and has been a hit ever since.
People can post edited, high-quality long videos of up to an hour on the platform. It has a vertical orientation, and has a separate section on the feeds of the users.
Automatic IGTV captions feature is the latest update to improve the IGTV business among the users.
All about the new update- automatic IGTV captions:
Vishal Shah, VP of Products, Instagram took over his personal Instagram ID to announce the new automatic IGTV captions feature on 15 September 2020.
Image source: Vishal Shah’s Instagram
The new update is launched to make the platform more accessible and easier to use for the users. Whenever the user uploads an IGTV video, they will have an option to switch to the ‘Auto-Generated Caption’ option in the caption settings.
Image source: Google
Instagram has brought in the automatic IGTV captions feature because of the following reasons:
- It will help the content to reach a broader set of the audience
- People will easily be able to watch the content without needing to turn on the sound.
- It will support the users who are deaf or hard of hearing
The Instagram community had been requesting for the update, and that’s the reason the company decided to launch automatic IGTV captions. The Facebook-owned company announces that as more and more people use the captions, the AI will learn and improve the quality. The feature is launching globally and is currently available in 16 languages.
“Audio within Instagram videos is unique. In that there are a variety of different languages, topics, acoustic conditions, cultural slang and accents,” a Facebook company representative said. “Auto-captioning videos requires cutting-edge research and engineering to power the artificial intelligence that we use in the process.”
Indian bloggers like Rizwan Bachav, Priya Adivarekar and Shereen appreciated and applauded the company for introducing the new feature.
It is not the first time Instagram has introduced a feature to promote the accessibility of their products. In 2018, they launched automatic alternative text which allows people with visual impairments to hear descriptions of photos through their screen reader while using Feed, Explore and Profile.
It also introduced custom alternative text where the users can add strong, detailed descriptions of their photos when uploading, which people using screen readers are then able to hear.
Why is Instagram promoting IGTV?
Introduction of the IGTV feature has turned out to be successful for the platform as it gives Instagram based creators a chance to make long videos and help them experiment much more with their content.
Although IGTV does not have a similar format as YouTube, it is a pretty solid video content promoting space. Most creators are switching to IGTVs because of more following on Instagram and easy to share capabilities.
As IGTV adds more features, more users will definitely align with the app. It could mean some repercussions for YouTube.
IGTV and YouTube are different in many ways:
- Time limit: IGTV allows users to make videos up to one hour whereas YouTube has no time limit
- Video orientation: While YouTube supports horizontal orientation, IGTV is more inclined towards vertical mode.
- Content: The content on IGTV is more personalized and related to the creator’s own experiences, whereas YouTube has various category content.
Because of the differences, Instagram wishes to make IGTV a full-fledged platform so that the user does not leave the platform to go and surf some other social media platforms for content.
Looking at the current scenario, YouTubers are also now posting their YouTube videos on their IGTVs so that their Instagram audience does not miss out on the content. With new features like automatic IGTV captions, it is confirmed that IGTV will get a lot of attraction from the audience all over the platform and will be among the top names in the video format race.
