Is IGTV the End for YouTube?

The concept of vlogging, which I discussed in my previous post, is becoming increasingly more popular for influencers. YouTube has served as the primary platform for vlogs since their rise to fame, but that may no longer be the case.

Last week, Instagram introduced "IGTV," a new feature that allows users to post up to one-hour long videos (as opposed to the former ceiling of one single minute). IGTV has sparked many conversations, and even a bit of controversy, since it was released on June 20th. However, the influencer community has seemed to come to the general consensus that this is the next big thing.

Since the IGTV announcement, the New York Times published an article, "Instagram Goes Long. Will You Follow?," hypothesizing the pros and cons of utilizing this new feature. Jonah Engel Bromwich opened the article by expressing that, "Those who make a living through Instagram... are thrilled about the company's new feature." He goes on to explain that the element of convenience, both for producers and consumers, has proven to be highly successful in terms of social media. And, well, I have to agree...

Almost two years ago, Instagram introduced "stories," a feature that formerly existed exclusively on Snapchat. At the time, people didn't seem too fazed by this. In fact, most people, myself included, had every intention to continue their regular use of Snapchat stories. That, of course, isn't what ended up happening. In the last two years, the use of Snapchat, especially for the purpose of stories, has been on a rapid decline. A lot of the articles and statistics surrounding the company's drop in growth cannot correlate it to Instagram, but it's fair to say that all signs still point in that direction.

With Snapchat as an example of a real-life Instagram takeover, things are looking a little ominous for even a company as wildly popular as YouTube. Will you now be watching your favorite influencers on IGTV? Let me know in the comments below!