📲 Instagram owner Meta to axe 3,600 lowest-performing staff ahead of 'intense year'
#news #Insta

Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, plans to cut about 3,600 positions, representing 5% of its workforce, as part of a strategy to remove low-performing staff. CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that the layoffs will be communicated on February 10, 2025, citing the need for a strong team in light of an "intense" year ahead.

This decision speeds up the typical performance review process, which usually takes a year. Additionally, Meta will eliminate fact-checkers and focus on performance-based cuts, with the intention of backfilling these roles later in 2025. Following the announcement, Meta's shares dropped approximately 2.9%.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 Instagram expands Reels to 3 minutes, updates profile grids
#news #Insta

Instagram has introduced several major updates to enhance user experience and compete with other platforms.

The most notable change is extending the Reels video length to three minutes, up from 90 seconds, responding to creator feedback for more storytelling flexibility. The platform will also replace its square profile grids with rectangular ones to better accommodate vertical content.

Additionally, Instagram will now display liked Reels to friends, making users’ interactions more visible. These updates, combined with the potential TikTok ban in the U.S., could drive more users and creators to Instagram in the coming weeks.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 Instagram’s Threads working on feature to add music to posts
#news #Insta

Music is set to play a larger role on Instagram’s rival app, Threads, with the development team reportedly prototyping a feature to add music to posts, similar to those on Instagram and Facebook. This feature is not yet available for public testing.

The move aligns with Meta’s recent music-licensing deals with Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group, which included Threads as part of the agreement, hinting at the integration of licensed music. Threads ended 2024 with over 300 million monthly active users and 100 million daily active users, showing rapid growth, though it still lags behind Instagram and Facebook.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 Instagram launches Edits, a video editing app for creators
#news #Insta

Instagram has launched a new video editing app for creators, available for pre-order on the App Store and expected to launch by mid-March. The free app lets users edit videos without watermarks, capture high-quality clips up to 10 minutes, and use AI animation to bring images to life.

It offers features like precise video editing, audio enhancement, automatic caption generation, and a live insights dashboard to track engagement. The app will also collect user data, including location, contacts, and usage history, for personalized experience and analytics.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 As TikTok Ban Looms, Instagram Reels Introduces a New Way to Interact With Friends
#news #Insta

Instagram is rolling out a new “friends tab” for Reels, which allows users to see the videos their friends have liked and engaged with. This update, inspired by TikTok’s algorithm, creates a separate feed that highlights content your friends are interacting with.

To access it, users can tap a new widget in the top right corner showing friends’ profile pictures. This feature is launching for U.S. users but may take some time to appear for everyone.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 Instagram hides search results for 'Democrats'
#news #Insta

Meta is working to fix a technical issue on Instagram that causes the message “results hidden” when users search for “Democrat” or “Democrats.” Some users have accused the company of political bias, especially since the problem began after President Trump’s inauguration.

Meta insists it’s a technical glitch affecting various hashtags, including those related to Republicans. Social media expert Matt Navarra warns that delays in resolving the issue could fuel conspiracy theories and harm Meta’s reputation. While “Republican” returns millions of posts, searches for “Democrat” show no results, fueling criticism. Meta has acknowledged the problem and is working to address it.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 Instagram head announces big changes: 3-minute Reels and new look for profile grid
#news #Insta

Instagram extends Reels to 3 minutes and updates profile grid to rectangles, offering new creative opportunities and improved content previews for users.

Instagram has announced significant updates to its platform, including extending the maximum length of Reels to three minutes and altering the profile grid layout from squares to rectangles. These changes, introduced by Instagram head Adam Mosseri, aim to enhance user experience and keep pace with competitors.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 Meta's pivot to the right sparks boycotts and calls for a user exodus
#news #Insta

In response to shifting political dynamics, Meta and CEO Mark Zuckerberg have made several controversial policy changes, including ending its third-party fact-checking program in the U.S. and scaling back content moderation on political discussions.

Instead, Meta plans to use a community notes system similar to Elon Musk’s X platform. The company also updated its policies on hateful conduct, allowing derogatory language about LGBTQ people, and disbanded its diversity, equity, and inclusion team. These changes have led to some users abandoning Meta’s platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 Instagram courts TikTok stars during turbulent times
#news #Insta

Meta is targeting TikTok creators as uncertainty surrounds the app’s future in the U.S. It has introduced a “Breakthrough Bonus” program, offering up to $5,000 over three months to encourage creators to post Reels on Instagram and Facebook.

Additionally, Meta is providing substantial incentives to top TikTok influencers to switch to Reels. Analysts believe Meta is capitalizing on TikTok’s volatility to attract creators more aggressively.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 Meta offers creators $5,000 to join Facebook and Instagram amid TikTok uncertainty
#news #Insta

Meta hasn't mentioned TikTok by name, but its new "Breakthrough bonus programme" is trying to appeal to creators using its competitors' platforms.TikTok briefly went offline in the US on Sunday ahead of a ban put in place by Joe Biden, but hours later, it came back onlinewith a message thanking his successor Donald Trump, who has suspended the ban for 75 days.

The delayed ban spells uncertainty for creators on TikTok - many of whom make a living through the wildly popular app.Coinciding with the looming ban is Meta's"Breakthrough bonus programme", which is offering creators from other apps up to $5,000 in bonuses in their first 90 days of signing up.
They need to share at least 20 reels on Facebook and 10 reels on Instagram within 30 days of accepting the terms and conditions of the bonus programme, the Meta website states.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲Instagram Adds Transparency Labels to Business Chats
#news #Insta

Meta is adding “Business Chat” labels to Instagram DMs to distinguish commercial conversations from personal ones, following a similar rollout on Messenger last August. The label will appear in the title bar, and there will be a link providing more details on how Meta uses data from business chats for improved responses and targeted ads.

This update aims to enhance transparency without changing privacy policies, clarifying that business chats are not covered by the same end-to-end encryption as personal chats, and user data could be shared for marketing purposes.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

🇺🇸OpenAI's ambitious Stargate Project hits a funding snag

OpenAI's next big leap, the *Stargate project*, is reportedly facing financial hurdles. According to recent reports, the project, which aims to push the boundaries of AI development, doesn’t currently have the funding it needs to move forward.

Stargate is rumored to be a massive initiative focused on creating advanced AI systems, potentially requiring unprecedented computational power and resources. However, securing the necessary investment has proven challenging, raising questions about the timeline and feasibility of the project.

This development highlights the growing costs and complexities of cutting-edge AI research. Will OpenAI find the funding to keep Stargate on track, or will this become a roadblock in the race for AI supremacy?

What are your thoughts? Is the future of AI innovation at risk, or is this just a temporary setback? Let’s discuss! 👇

📊 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 TikTok users will jump to Instagram, Facebook if US ban becomes permanent
#news #Insta

TikTok users are already moving to alternate social media channels in light of the move to ban the social media app in the U.S.The channel shut itself down Jan. 19 but got a reprieve from newly-elected President Donald Trump who issues an executive stay for 75 days the following day. Government officials initially banned the app as part of the Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act.

Among TikTok users, familiarity with the ban has grown significantly as 70% said they were very familiar with the news, according to a Numerator survey that polled 9,000 consumers on social media usage, compared to 52% who said the same in a May 2024 Numerator survey. The survey included 2,500 TikTok users, according to a press release on the findings.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

🚀 TravelPerk raises $200M as valuation nearly doubles to $2.7B!

TravelPerk, the business travel management platform, has just secured a massive $200 million in funding, pushing its valuation to $2.7 billion — nearly double its previous figure!

📈 Investors are clearly confident in TravelPerk’s potential, especially as the business travel market continues to recover post-pandemic. The platform offers seamless booking, trip management, and reporting tools, making it a favorite among companies worldwide.

What’s next? TravelPerk plans to expand its services, invest in new technologies, and strengthen its market position.

Do you use tools like TravelPerk for business travel? Share your thoughts in the comments!👇

✔️Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 Instagram Will Soon Offer X-Like Community Notes To Flag Content
#news #Insta

Instagram is reportedly working on introducing a “Community Notes” feature, allowing eligible users to provide background information or opinions to help others avoid misleading content.

This feature, currently under development and not yet available, is said to be in testing on Threads, with plans for a U.S. rollout before expanding globally. The aim is to give users the ability to contribute notes on published posts, enhancing content accuracy and combating misinformation.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 Instagram’s new location sharing feature sparks privacy concerns
#news #Insta

Instagram’s latest update introduces a real-time location-sharing feature, allowing users to share their live location temporarily through DMs. While the feature is opt-in and customizable, it has raised privacy concerns on social media, with users fearing stalking and unauthorized tracking.

Critics warn that even with privacy settings, sharing location data could still pose risks. Instagram assures users that location sharing is private and only visible to selected individuals, but experts highlight concerns over the platform’s data collection practices. To protect privacy, users can turn off location access entirely through device settings.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 Instagram’s Grid Update Sparks Backlash from Creators
#news #Insta

Instagram is going through some growing pains.The popular photo and video sharing app rolled out a major change this week that replaces traditional square posts with vertical rectangles—and ruining perfectly curated grids along the way.

"I know some of you really like your squares. And square photos are sort of the heritage of Instagram," said Instagram chief Adam Mosseri, per Mashable. "But at this point, most of what’s uploaded, both photos and videos, are vertical in their orientation. And it just is a bummer to overly crop them. I know it's a change. I know it's a bit of a pain, but I think it's a transitional pain."

On Tuesday, Instagram’s official Creators account shared some updated guidelines for carousels, Reels, and Story posts. It became clear from the comments section that users aren’t thrilled with the switch-up..

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 Instagram rolls out more actionable insights for its Creators
#news #Insta

Instagram is enhancing its Insights feature to help creators better understand their content’s performance. New metrics include “View Rate,” which shows how many viewers continue watching after the first 3 seconds of a reel, and “Views Over Time,” which compares a post’s current views to its typical views over time.

These changes aim to provide creators with actionable data, personalized tips, and a clearer view of their content’s reach, helping them optimize their strategies. As a result, creators can improve engagement, grow their audience, and diversify their platforms in an evolving social media landscape.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures

📲 Meta AI will use its ‘memory’ to provide better recommendations
#news #Insta

Meta is launching a new feature for its AI chatbot that allows it to "remember" user preferences, such as dietary choices and interests. This memory functionality will be integrated across Facebook, Messenger, and WhatsApp, enabling the AI to provide more personalized recommendations based on users' past interactions and details from their social media profiles.

The AI will adjust its responses based on context—for example, if a user indicates they are vegan, it will tailor future recipe suggestions accordingly. Users can delete specific memories, but there is currently no option to disable the personalization feature entirely. Meta believes that personalized experiences enhance user engagement and satisfaction.

💻 Source

🛡 Powered by V3V Ventures