Instagram has updated Search and Explore, to provide real-time updates and challenge Twitter. (Photo : Reuters)
Instagram Direct will receive a major update in order to further broaden its services. The recently announced update will include threaded messages as well as the ability to send content from the users feed as a Direct Message.
The announcement was made on Instagram's official blog and enumerates as well as explain how the new features will work.
When Instagram Direct was introduced in 2013, it only offers a handful of services like the private sharing of photo with someone or to a group. This way, users can share photos without the need to post in directly into their profile, a feature which gave users a sense of privacy.
The new threaded conversation feature will allow users to chat about a certain photo instead of just posting comments on it. The update will also introduce a feature which will allow users to start a group chat which essentially makes Instagram Direct a messaging platform aside from being just a photosharing app.
Instagram Direct lead project engineer Ann Baum told Wired, "We wanted to make a place for converstations to keep going, to enable that back-and-forth. Now if you want to respond and send a new photo, you have a place to do that."
Many tech analysts said that the introduction of the threaded messaging feature on Instagram Direct means that the service is simply following the footsteps of its corporate parent, the social network giant Facebook.
On top of the new threaded messaging feature, the update will also give Instagram Direct users the ability to name their groups as well as a new camera feature for quickly taking selfie and a new set of extra-large emoji.
