Instagram Testing a New Feature That Looks Just Like Rival BeReal
Facebook has used instagram by cloning the signature features of its rivals like Snapchat and Tiktok to compete with them throughout the years. BeReal, a more recent service with rapid growth, seems to getting the company attention.
Instagram is experimenting a feature called, “IG Candid Challenges” that is remarkably similar to the main concept of BeReal. BeReal has been labelled as Anti-Instagram app because of its focus on more “genuine” post.
Users of BeReal get a “BeReal” prompt once a day at a random time. Then it takes two minutes to snap and post the unfiltered back and front of what you are doing at that time.
Similarly, the Candid Challenge option will require Instagram user to upload a photo to their story within two minutes, each day at a different time.
Additionally, it looks to employ a dual camera shots of BeReal, which simultaneously captures images with back and front camera.
A Meta spokesperson acknowledged to CNN Business that IG Challenge Feature is being tested internally, but did not give other details. “This feature is an internal prototype, and not testing externally,” said Christine Pai, a Meta spokesperson.
BeReal was widely popular earlier this year as it was launched in late 2019. Since its release, the app has been download 43.3 million times, with over 40 million of expected installation in 2022, according to the Apptopia. BeReal topped the charts in the Us Apple App store this summer. According to apptopia, its top market is US but it was started by French businessman.
Lawmakers and some users have criticized Facebook and its parent company Meta in recent years for trying to fend off competition by copying key features. Instagram recently came under fire from users, including members of the Kardashian family, who complained last month that the app is becoming too much like TikTok. In the end, Instagram eventually changed some things back.
In pursuing BeReal, Meta might be struggling to retain younger customers who appear to have migrated to the more recent service. But Meta must also face the factors that some people find appealing about the software. A Georgetown University student who uses the BeReal app told CNN earlier this year that he believed the popularity of app was an antidote to the pressure to look perfect online. He said he was.
