Instagram tests videos up to 90 minutes long, challenging YouTube

Instagram returns to long-form video

Instagram has announced it is testing a new type of video upload — the 'Features' format, which allows creators to publish videos up to 90 minutes long. This was reported by TechCrunch citing an announcement by Instagram head Adam Mosseri. After years in which all social networks, including LinkedIn, actively pushed short vertical videos, this marks a notable shift in the platform's strategy. Mosseri admitted he had long opposed long-form video on Instagram, because short content like Reels generates more shares and direct messages, but vice president of product Tessa Lyons, an advocate of the change, convinced him to give the long format another chance.

Why this is a challenge to YouTube

The bet on long videos is about money. Short vertical content is harder to monetize: there is little room for ads in it, and Instagram, like TikTok, has failed to replicate the YouTube model, where Partner Program members receive 55% of ad revenue from videos. According to the platform, over the previous four years YouTube paid out more than $100 billion to creators, musicians and media companies. Mosseri explained in an interview on the Colin and Samir Showthat on Instagram creators mostly earn from brands: the platform has a small pay-per-view program, but it spends more on it than it earns, so scaling it makes no sense for now. Many creators even treat their Instagram accounts as promotional platforms for their YouTube channels.

What is being tested and what remains unknown

In addition to 'Features', Instagram is testing a 'Clips as Reels' feature, which allows making Reels from long videos with a link to the full clip, as well as saving long videos for viewing in the Instagram app on TV. Tests are running in Brazil and now, on a small scale, in the US. The platform is also working on improved search for Live videos and a hub of episodic Reels on a creator's profile — series of related clips similar to TikTok playlists. The key open question is monetization: TechCrunch notes that Meta, which earns billions from advertising, could embed ads in long videos, as it tried eight years ago with the discontinued IGTV service . A Meta spokesperson told the publication that it is too early to share a long-term monetization model, but the company is exploring ways for creators to earn from brands, fans and Instagram itself, including performance-based incentives. This is an uncertain, but not a negative answer: if ads appear, Instagram will for the first time be able to seriously compete with the YouTube Partner Program.