Technology is the sector of knowledge, work and study that is perhaps the most ripe with innovation. Technology can essentially be defined as the practical application of the laws of science, in order to reach a material end; due to this, some view it as a form of humanity bending nature itself to it’s will. Compound these facts with the exponential growth rate of technology, and you have a field that seems to almost inexplicably produce wonders of creation every day.
Yet, regardless of this apparent abundance of intellectual creativity and innovation, the field also has a notable history of producing inventions that copy the ingenuity of others; some of which end up going on to spark heated battles between the parties responsible, both socially & legally. These inventions are part of the subcategory known as copycat technology; tools, devices, inventions and applications that attempt to virtually replicate the experience and/or advantage provided by the works of others. It should be noted offset that copycat technology is not necessarily a bad thing, as some makers of copycat tech will frequently implement new features into their creations to give them a competitive edge.
This article will delve into the modern application of copycat technology by one company in particular, that being the social media giant known as Instagram.
Instagram’s History of Copycat Technology
Many of the readers are undoubtedly familiar with Instagram. In the case that a few of you aren’t, Instagram is an extremely popular social media platform available on nearly all digital devices. Once signed up, users can partake in a community of hundreds of millions, posting and sharing pictures/videos and all other forms of media. Many may not be aware, but Instagram is actually a subsidiary platform of the more popular social media network known as Facebook.
Whilst Instagram has risen to the top of its market with innovative and unique features of its own, the platform also has a history of siphoning ideas & features from other popular social media platforms. The most recent and widespread use of copycat tech by Instagram is in its efforts to replicate the features of up and coming social network TikTok, a phenomenon we will delve into extensively within the contents of this article.
Instagram’s Replication of TikTok
To those unaware, TikTok is an up and coming social media platform that has an emphasis on media posting/sharing just like Instagram, but instead focuses on much more compact pieces of media; such as video clips that are just a few seconds long. The idea of TikTok is to do something within the time limit that catches the viewers attention as they scroll through the platform, and many pieces of media uploaded to the platform tend to be musical or outright spontaneous in nature to do so.
Due to the rising popularity of the platform, it has caught the attention of market giant Instagram, which has made attempts at providing identical features as the network. Chief among these attempts being Instagram’s introduction of “Instagram Reels”, a new feature which allows users to record 15-second videos, apply music to their rhythm/background, and add them to your story. Such reels even have a special section within the Explore tab of the app, in order to encourage users to make use of the feature.
Instagram has stated that the Reels feature has been in development for quite some time & is not a complete replica of TikTok’s features, but the usability and timing of the release is no coincidence. Instagram has stated “this isn’t about who invented something. This is about a format and how you take it to a network and put your own spin on it.” with regards to the situation, and have made it clear that they view this as innovation rather than imitation.
The Reels feature has been adopted profoundly well by the Instagram community, quickly becoming one of Instagram’s most used features. Some believe that this success is due to the timing of Reel’s release to the market, being announced in tandem with rising socio-political complications regarding TikTok itself. These complications are highlighting fears that TikTok will be bought out, or worst, banned completely. In this environment of unrest, Instagram’s venture to surpass TikTok at it’s own game couldn’t have come at a more opportune time; and parties everywhere are interested to see who’ll come out on top of this showdown.
Whilst technology may be a field that seems filled to the brim with cutting-edge developments, it’s all to easy to forget that sometimes people just want the quickest path to victory. And whilst copycat technology can certainly be loathsome, it can also provide much-needed improvements to loved features; an idea Instagram themselves aren’t too unfamiliar with.