Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has made no secret of the fact that he wants all of the company’s apps to be one big happy family. However, that’s easier said than done, especially considering that many people who do not want Instagram, the crown jewel of Facebook, to go anywhere near the big blue app. It may be a little harder to stay away in the near future.
The edge reports that on Friday apparently began rolling out an update integrating its Instagram and Facebook Messenger chat systems into the US. The new integration was quietly announced via a cheerful pop-up message that appeared to users when they opened Instagram on their phones on iOS and Android
“There’s a new way to post on Instagram,” the post read, according to the Verge.
It also described the new features that would accompany this integration. These include, among other things, a new colorful look for your conversations, the ability to respond (to messages, I imagine) with each emoji, the ability to wipe to reply to messages, and the ability to chat with people who use Facebook.
G / O Media can get a commission
For those of you who are alarmed, do not be afraid, at least not at the moment. Facebook apparently does not force users to update Instagram immediately. It is not clear how long users will be able to delay this integration, although the reason is that they will probably be forced to do so.
However, if these features sound interesting to you and you decide to update now, you will see that the typical DM icon of Instagram has been changed in the top right corner of the app. Per the Verge, this icon has been replaced by the Messenger logo, except for the colors, which match the design of Instagram.
The conversations on Instagram DM are apparently indeed more colorful. Messages shift from blue to purple, which kind of thing is hard to imagine. A Twitter user shared screenshots of what this looks like, which you can see below.
I personally do not understand it but why Facebook decided to let this thing about colors do. I mean, blue is not a color I associate with Instagram, although I just analyzed the app icon on my phone and I to think I totally see a hint of blue. When I think of blue, I think of Facebook, that’s maybe the point.
One feature is currently strikingly absent: the ability to post users on Instagram from Instagram. Since it was announced in the post that Instagram users saw in the app, it is likely this will happen roll out gau.
Allow cross-messaging between Facebook Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp has been part of Zuckerberg’s master plan for a while. While each of the apps remains standalone, Facebook is working to integrate its underlying technical infrastructure. This means that people who only use one of Facebook’s apps can communicate with them in the realm, even if they do not use the same app.
This is also a way for Facebook to compete directly with Apple, which has iMessage, and Google’s apps.
As part of the integration effort, Facebook has also incorporated end-to-end coding into all apps. When the news broke in 2019 about its plans, the company said it “wanted to build the best messaging experiences” it could and “make it easier to reach friends and family over networks.”
I do not know everything about you, but the first thing I thought was, “Oh God, Facebook is invading Instagram.” I have accounts on both apps, but have been using Instagram more and more in recent years. Something tells me that my reaction was tame compared to the people on Instagram who do not like Facebook at all and consider it “uncool” and exaggerated with Boomers.
Now, these people will not like the Messenger flagship icon in the corner, and will always remind themselves that one of their favorite apps belongs to Facebook. But after a while, they will probably get over it. Facebook is just that intertwined in our lives, for better or worse.
[The Verge]
.
