Instagram has introduced ‘Channels’

Instagram, the popular social media platform, has introduced a new feature called “Channels.”

The CEO of Meta, Mark Zuckerberg, announced this new feature, which allows creators to share public messages to engage with their followers directly. Channels offer support for text, images, polls, and reactions, among other things.

Zuckerberg himself started his own broadcast channel to share updates on Meta’s developments.

Initially, Instagram is testing the channels feature with selected creators in the U.S. before expanding it in the coming months. Creators can use broadcast channels to keep their followers up-to-date and share behind-the-scenes moments. It’s worth noting that only creators can post in broadcast channels, while followers can react to content and participate in polls.

Instagram plans to add more features to broadcast channels in the future, such as the option for creators to invite another creator to the channel to discuss upcoming collaborations or collect questions for an AMA via question prompts.

This new feature gives creators a more direct way to update their followers within the app. Previously, creators posted stories to share news and updates, but the new feature enables more engagement with fans. Creators can use the feature to get feedback on content and promote their content.

The company plans to bring the channels feature to Messenger and Facebook in the coming months, according to Zuckerberg.

Once creators have access to channels, they can start one from their Instagram inbox. Their followers receive a one-time notification to join the channel after the first message is sent. Creators can also encourage their followers to join by using the “join channel” sticker in Stories. Creators will soon be able to pin their channel to their profile.

While all Instagram users can discover broadcast channels and view their content, only followers who join the channel will receive notifications when the creator posts updates. Followers can leave or mute broadcast channels at any time and control their notifications from creators.

Broadcast channels are subject to Instagram’s community guidelines, and people can report both the broadcast channel itself or specific content shared in the channel. Content that goes against Meta policies can be removed. Broadcast channels are designed for public and discoverable chat experiences, so they are treated differently from private messaging on Instagram. Meta has tools and reviewers to help identify, review or remove content in broadcast channels that may violate its guidelines.