James Charles hates the new Instagram update. Here's why they don't care.

Last week, Instagram rolled out a new update to all of its users which added Reels and Shop tabs to the app's main function bar, with the more frequently used Activity and New Post buttons moved to the top right corner of the screen.

Instagram Reels, widely agreed to be a half-baked TikTok replica, was released earlier this year in an attempt to cash in on the surge in popularity of short-form video. Meanwhile, Instagram has been taking steady steps to expand eCommerce within the app and this latest update makes Instagram Shopping a much more prominent part of the user experience.

Instagram seemingly always goes against the grain when it comes to updating the app's UI, choosing to force weird new features down its users' throats rather than listening and responding to what they want. Therefore, it's no surprise that the reaction to this new update on social media was universally negative.

The replacement of the notifications button with the Instagram Shopping tab is the one that ruffled the most feathers. It would seem that Instagram succeeded in exploiting our collective muscle memory, with scores of people taking to Twitter to complain about accidentally ending up on boutique clothing stores whilst trying to check their likes.

One of the most prominent and passionate voices speaking out against the latest update was YouTube beauty guru, James Charles, who also took to Twitter to express his frustration.

It didn't end there though. He went on an even more impassioned rant on his Instagram story, calling the update "absolute trash" and accusing the platform of not giving a "flying f**k about their creators" and caring about "making money, and only making money."

Whilst his choice of words was harsh, James hit the nail on the head here. The introduction of the shopping tab and its placement at the forefront of the app is Instagram's latest move in expanding the app's eCommerce capabilities. One side-effect of the worldwide Covid-19 lockdowns was a sharp increase in eCommerce sales, as well as boutique sellers losing out on in-person sales opportunities. Therefore from a business standpoint, Instagram making a play for a larger slice of the eCommerce pie makes perfect sense, however unpopular it may be in the short term.

To me, this latest move from Instagram poses a number of pressing questions:

• Is Instagram too big to fail? Do the people behind Instagram believe in their invincibility? Is this the reason for their willingness to cause short-term upset to their users in the pursuit of their long term goals for the platform? Is Instagram's monopoly on being the prime photo-sharing app worldwide so strong that they can afford to continually roll out unpopular updates and invite backlash from the public?
• Will there ever be a straw that breaks the camel's back? Will Instagram, one day, release an update so unpopular that it causes widespread abandonment of the platform? Or are its users accustomed to constant facelifts and redesigns of the app's layout, and therefore capable of getting used to anything?

Ultimately, the reactions to the latest recent update could be seen as a testament to the fickle nature of social media outrage. There's a good chance that Instagram users will quickly get used to the new layout, and find something else to be angry at by next week.

With around one billion active users, Instagram is well aware of the power they wield. They've taken these kinds of calculated risks before by introducing new features, and so far none have backfired.

A quick look at the history of Instagram's UI over the years, with its frequent facelifts and additions of new features, will show you just how far the app has come from its original form. With every update, Instagram users show apprehension before warming to the new changes. The additions of Direct Messaging and Stories are both examples of features that stirred up feelings of confusion among users at first but very quickly became staple features of the app.

James Charles and many other Instagram users are angry right now, but history tells us that it's only a matter of time before this anger subsides and we all get used to the new layout and grow to like the new features. Who knows? His Sisters Apparel and makeup palettes may eventually end up finding a new home on the shopping tab.