The social network with photos turns 10: the evolution of Instagram, which changed the way we communicate
It's been 10 years since the launch of Instagram, the photo-based social network that radically changed communication on the web. From the vintage look that paid homage to the historic Polaroid, to the platform of Stories and photos with filters, now it reinvents itself with Reels to challenge TikTok.
On October 6, 2010 Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger invented the app only for iPhone devices and in a few weeks the download boom arrived. A nostalgic format that winks at the albums full of Polaroids and has conquered Mark Zuckerberg, former dad of Facebook, who in 2012 buys it for 1 billion dollars, against the current value of 100 billion dollars. Instagram has continued to grow, arrived on Android devices and exceeded 1 billion monthly active users. Over the years it has changed interface and received new features: here are its 10 years among photos, filters, Stories, influencers of one of the most beloved apps by young people.
Instagram, how it has changed
Until 2012, Instagram was a simple iPhone app to post and share photos with friends. The social network began its change after Zuckerberg purchased it and transformed it. The Polaroid logo gives way to a square and decidedly stylized version. If blue is the color of Facebook, pink becomes the color of Instagram. Then come with each update new filters for editing photos posted, direct messages and Stories, borrowed from rival Snapchat.
Then it was time for verified profiles and commercials that opened the birth of the first influencers, and even videos, IGTV and Instagram Shop, to buy directly on the social network. After the recent security problems highlighted for TikTok, Instagram has changed its face again by introducing Reels for the creation of short funny videos. Now the arrival of the new interface, with the buttons that change place to accommodate in the Home all the features that the app offers to its users.
Instagram towards merger with Facebook and WhatsApp
The news and changes for Instagram are certainly not finished, with Zuckerberg's plan to create a super messaging app from the merger of Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp.
The first effects of the merger can already be seen with the cross-posting of Stories in automatic, as well as the integration of Instagram Direct Message and Facebook Messenger chats, which was announced on Facebook's official blog and will be gradually released in different countries around the world. In 10 years, Instagram has changed and will continue to evolve.