Instagram's curated video channel is here; Facebook continues to borrow features from Snapchat

Instagram has added a new feature that is aimed at sprucing up the experience around big events and moments. The idea is to create Instagram content around a particular event and help make it easily searchable. Sound familiar? Yes, this is something we saw Snapchat do a year ago by introducing Our Story . It started testing the feature with events like Electric Daisy Carnival dance and music festival and also FIFA World Cup , and Facebook’s Instagram decided to start with the most sociable festival Halloween. Ever since its failed attempt at acquiring Snapchat, the company has been trying to fill the gap. Facebook also seems to have copied the app by building what it called a Snapchat-rival dubbed Slingshot from the scratch, which was primarily a video-focused app. However, Slingshot failed to dethrone Snapchat, and the latter continued its efforts at adding new features. Photo shares and teenage users Back then, Facebook had more than a reason to run after Snapchat. One of the main reasons was the number of photos shared on Snapchat easily surpassed Facebook. A little over a year ago, over 700 million photos were shared through the app, placing it on the top of the charts. Another reason was how it has been unsuccessful at attracting teenagers. Reports spoke about how teens have shunned Facebook for a more private Snapchat. If chatter online is to be believed than Facebook has been worried about reaching a point of stagnation at its core markets, and looking for newer markets. Apart from newer markets, the company is also looking at newer users in its stagnating markets – teens joining social media. But reports and surveys said how teens had shunned Facebook for a more private social platform. Snapchat’s majority users are teens. In fact, last year, during the new update , Kansas-based High school teacher Tracie Schroeder tweeted about her classroom going into chaos after students got the update . Shift in the pattern However, going by the most recent report, Facebook has not much to worry about. A Pew research earlier this year showed how Facebook tops the charts for teens between ages 13 to 17. Another report showed Instagram take the top shot when it comes to a social platform that attracts teens. Acquisitions like Instagram and even the messaging platform WhatsApp have slowly helped the company lead the herd when it comes to sharing photos. The videos war While Snapchat may not be as big threat for Facebook now, there are various reasons why Facebook is still fixated at the app. Snapchat still offers the uniqueness that no has managed to imitate. The key highlights of Snapchat are its ability to share images instantly and send ephemeral photos. This pretty much explains why everyone either wants a piece of Snapchat or is busy building Snapchat-like features. [caption id=“attachment_224181” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”] Image: Reuters[/caption] Unlike other companies that build products, Facebook follows the acquisition strategy and now owns most companies that it once felt were either a threat or could be more beneficial to Facebook. Under its hood, it now has big photo sharing app like Instagram as well as messaging giant WhatsApp. However, the standalone Snapchat app still stands a fair chance as it is among the top 5. Moreover, Facebook has realised that the future is videos, and possibly the increasing ability of Instagram to attract new teenager that it has added the new feature. On the other hand, Snapchat already has several popular video products such as discover platforms, video channel and more. Snapchat Live that broadcasts and of course, My Stories, that focuses on a series of content around big events. In the run-up for the videos race, Facebook wants to ensure that it is ahead of the race, and doesn’t want to be in a threatening position when it comes to Snapchat, again.