Have you ever wondered why some of your uploaded videos on the social networking platform Instagram seem to be leaking, while other users only see the highest quality video? The social network's management reveals that it's not a connection or network error - it's all about how that video performs on the platform. Arnoldas Lukošius, "Tele2The innovation expert emphasizes that such changes will have an impact on content creators with a smaller audience.
"The platform itself is interested in providing users with the best possible experience." Instagram's official announcements state that the social network's priority is always to show users the highest quality image. Although this will not mean a fundamental change, it will affect the beginning content creators. It's true, let's remember that users usually get involved in the content not because of the montage or the quality of the video graphics, but because of the information contained in it", reveals A. Lukošius.
Popularity is important
"If a user uploads a post that doesn't get a lot of attention and views, Instagram will automatically reduce the quality of their video graphics. However, it should be emphasized that if that video suddenly becomes popular and is viewed, users will engage in it, then we will show it again in a higher quality resolution", explains A. Lukošius.
Some users say that Instagram's decision limits content creators with few followers, who may face losing them in order to grow a strong fan base. Discussions on various internet forums suggest that such a platform update will pose challenges to developers with few followers.
"Social network experts see the threat that the introduction of such restrictions on the platform will reduce the number of new content creators on Instagram. It will not only be difficult for them to grow a new circle of followers, but also to keep existing users", A. Lukošius, Tele2's Innovation Expert, shares his insights.
The company will save at the expense of image quality
The update of the Instagram social network complies with the policy implemented by the company Meta (Instagram and Facebook belong to this company). Back in 2021, Meta was considering how to keep up with the ever-increasing amount of videos uploaded to the available social network platforms. This has alarmed business experts, as it is estimated that 4 billion videos of all kinds are uploaded to Facebook alone per day.
In order to save the company's resources, Meta announced that freshly uploaded videos will be given the most optimal and simple encoding. Only when your uploaded video meets the company's standards and gets attention - long watch time and many views - will it be shown again in a higher quality. When uploaded content becomes particularly popular, Meta applies a state-of-the-art processing system to it, allowing the user to see it in higher quality.
Experts argue that we will continue to hear similar statements from companies of this type in the future. Examples from Instagram or Facebook can be just the beginning. As Meta gets more involved in the development of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, the company is spending more money on data processing and storage. Similar saving of resources can be seen in other companies. For example, Twitch shut down its operations in South Korea to save on data costs.
