Instagram Launches Broadcast Channels Globally
Instagram’s one-way messaging feature, similar to Telegram’s broadcast channels, will soon be accessible to a wider audience. According to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, the company is launching the feature worldwide today, after it was previously only available to a few creators.
Broadcast channels allow users to post messages to their followers, who can react to them and vote in polls, but cannot respond directly. Zuckerberg has used his channel to share announcements and updates about Meta’s products.
In addition to text updates, content producers can send images, videos and audio clips. They can also invite others to join their channel as co-users. Zuckerberg previously had a public chat on his channel with Instagram CEO Adam Mosser.
Meta brought channels to WhatsApp for the first time last week. A few organizations have access for now, but WhatsApp will roll out the feature more widely in the coming months. Meta plans to bring channels to Facebook and Messenger as well.
Meanwhile, Meta is developing a text-based “decentralized social network” to compete with Twitter. Reports suggest that while this is a standalone service that connects to the web protocol that uses Mastodon, you can log in with your Instagram account to populate your profile.
