Instagram is beginning to roll out direct messages to the web. A small percentage of its global users will be able to access direct messages from the Instagram web.
According to Instagram, this feature will be useful for businesses, influencers, and anyone else who sends lots of DMs. It will also help to round out the app’s experience across devices.
The direct messaging experience will be essentially the same through the browser as it is on mobile. Users can create new groups or start a chat with someone either from the DM screen or a profile page.
Alternatively, you can also double-tap to like a message. You can share photos from the desktop, and see the total number of unread messages. You’ll be able to receive desktop DM notifications if you enable notifications for the entire site in your browser.
The rollout is currently under pilot testing. Instagram promises to add more details once the large scale roll-out is completed. Instagram says it’ll “continue to iterate” on this during the test.
Web DMs can help its users “stay in touch with the people they care about. Also, it could help office workers, students and others stuck on a full-size computer all day or who don’t have room on their phone for another app to spend more time and stay better connected on the app.
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Before, you could do less with the Instagram Web besides liking, searching for content and sharing. With messaging set to roll out. Users will easily navigate through the app and reach wot they what without the hustle of moving to back to the mobile app.
According to the Verge blog, Facebook has in most times placed a focus on messaging over the past year. Earlier on the Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg had commented that, “private messaging, groups, and Stories” were the “three fastest-growing areas of online communication.” Instagram Stories are already on the web,”
Now that Instagram allows some of its users to access group chats and private messages from the browser, it aligns with the companies mission to prioritize messaging.
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In October, Instagram introduced a similar messaging extension dubbed thread from Instagram for its users. The app was a camera first messaging app that would help users stay connected to their close friends.
“Over the last few years, we’ve introduced several new ways to share visually on Instagram. Connect you with people you care about – from sharing everyday moments on Stories to visual messages on Direct. But for your smaller circle of friends, we saw the need to stay more connected throughout the day, so you can communicate what you’re doing and how you’re feeling through photos and videos. That’s why we built Threads, a new way to message with close friends in a dedicated, private space” according to Instagram press.
Additionally, The company plans to eventually allow Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram users to message each other, regardless of the platform they’re using. This if rolled out, will give users even more flexibility about where they have conversations.
