Snapchat vs Instagram …The full “Story”
Why didn’t Snapchat sue Facebook?
This is a very common question people have between the two platforms, or should I say three (since Facebook also owns Instagram). The simple answer is… Snapchat can’t. You’re probably wondering… Isn’t the whole idea of a patent to protect your assets from being copied and recreated? Yes, that is true. But there isn’t exactly any type of patent, copyright or trademark law that protects an idea. Snapchat’s story feature involves taking someone’s idea of status and tacking on the gimmick of making it temporary. Snapchat did not technically produce the content of the story, they just provided a way to share it in a public field for 24 hours. If you’re still a bit confused, let me explain using an example. Let’s look at YouTube, a popular video sharing website where people create unique content and share it with millions of people. There are companies who do the exact same thing such as Vimeo and Dailymotion. People can use any of these sites to create videos and post them as well. No infringement whatsoever. Now, if someone were to take another person’s exact video and post it somewhere else, then legal action can be taken. However, the legal action is between the content creators not YouTube. In fact, according to Duke Law professor Arti Rai “It’s okay to take somebody’s idea so long as your expression is different.” This is especially true because of the differences between Instagram’s and Snapchat’s interface. Interestingly enough, Snapchat does have a patented feature for stories called the “Apparatus and method for single action control of social network profile access.”…..Yeah, I had no idea what that meant either. But after some digging, I found that it was a feature that allows Snapchat to show you content that you have not seen yet. For example, lets say you’ve checked only half of your friends seemingly endless stories because of the fact that you actually have a life! Now, say that you come back later during the day to finish watching the other half. Snapchat allows you to continue watching where you left off so you don’t have to go through the hassle of watching the previous snaps over again. It seems as though Instagram copied Snapchat. However, there are tiny user-friendly details that Instagram differs in, to be called a Snapchat rip-off.
The Rise of Snapchat
In 2013 Facebook offered a staggering 3 billion dollars to buy out Snapchat. However, Evan Spiegel, Snapchat’s CEO, turned down the offer because of the potential of Snapchat’s unique business model. What Evan realized is that Snapchat had entered a new space in the social media and application industry that focused on the camera. The days of updating status were over and the story feature was a huge hit because Snapchat had tapped into historical media roots. When I mean historical, I’m talking about the days before PVR and recording. Back to the time when something aired once on TV or radio, and that was it. Teens practically viewed Snapchat as a priority because of the simple fact that stories lasted for only 24 hours, which added value to people’s content. Meanwhile, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter were more of the permanent and digitally stored posts that people “checked later.” Another really interesting reason that caused the Snapchat revolution was the fact that as Facebook grew, parents started to use it. This was great for Facebook but, naturally teens wanted their own space to share their life’s moments. Plus, as an added bonus if you storied something rather unconventional, jobseekers, family and most importantly parents could never track you down (Thank God for the 24h feature).
Snapchat’s CEO was not the only one who saw the possibility of a bright future. Mark Zuckerberg was well aware Instagram and Facebook would lose out to Snapchat, if he did not do something quick… And Instagram stories was born.
Instagram Stories
On August 2nd 2016 Instagram launched Instagram stories, which directly competed against Snapchat’s core features. Was this going to take off as well as Snapchat? “Of course not”, people explained… Oh Man were they wrong. Snapchat was starting to slow down in user numbers and by October 2016, Instagram had 100 million daily users of it’s story feature alone.
How did this happen? Well there are many angles to look at. One comes from the marketing and branding point of view. Since Instagram is a more open type of platform, marketers are dedicating more content on it because it can reach more people faster. Snapchat is making the same mistakes as Vine did. They aren’t embracing creators. They want to be a private messaging platform. In comparison, Instagram promotes accounts and helps them grow their stories by featuring them on it’s Explore tab, which is something that Snapchat lacks.
Shifting gears, another interesting way to look at the Instagram vs. Snapchat user war is by comparing the user experience. Instead of lifting the entire experience straight from Snapchat and just making it look better, what Instagram has built is actually better and more well considered. Snapchat’s problem, which might be slightly intentional, is that it’s always been confusing and opaque to use. Adults frequently complain that they have no idea how to use the service, while generations of millennial’s (my friends and I) cheerfully enjoy it without needing to be taught. In a way you almost needed to have Snapchat from the very beginning to understand the evolution of the swipes and clicks. Instagram took that confusing interface and did what it’s always done best. Made it useful to the masses, with a number of improvements, that make it far more enjoyable to use. There are hints throughout the interface on both how to use it, and the simplicity that the company’s chosen to use. Instagram Stories have all the fancy drawing features you would find on Snapchat, but less buttons and options to get in the way of actually sharing your content, like the very first version of Snapchat back in the day. To reduce confusion, Instagram stories focuses on obvious labeled buttons, instead of swipes. It also offers information on where you are exactly in the app. There’s always context for what you’re looking at and where to go next, something that’s frequently lost in Snapchat. At the end of the day however, people tend to use the platform that their friends and the world use the most.
Hmmm well…… Shouldn’t Facebook stories be the most popular because the platform alone hosts nearly 2 billion users? Well no. Facebook is great, and in my opinion the gateway platform to all the other platforms out there. However, Facebook has lost the ability to allow people to focus on it’s main features. This is not necessarily a bad thing because it can serve for many uses, from job searching to messaging to playing games. But, since the arrival of Facebook stories, it seems as though the feature has diluted into the countless other uses of Facebook. There is no real way of isolating a particular use or key feature on Facebook. People like going to a certain app that does one thing the best. With Facebook they try to accomplish too much. That is why attention can be easily taken away by other distractions that pop out throughout the interface.
The Verdict
Given all these points it seems as though I am praising Instagram for their attempt to copy Snapchat’s originality. That is not the case at all. I respect Mark Zuckerberg in a big way. He can understand trends quickly and efficiently. He knows a good product when he see’s it. Instead of laying back, he does everything in his power to take out the competition, which any company seeks to do. I mean, he bought out Instagram and Whatsapp, which were both great moves! With that said, no matter the strategy, I don’t think any other platform can truly steal what is core about Snapchat. I happen to ask my younger brother, “What is the difference between posting on Snapchat and posting on Instagram?” He explained that we try to impress people on Instagram. We pick a moment in our life and put thought into a caption. I know for a fact many can relate to the constant “caption approvals” we go through with our friends before posting a picture. He further went on to say that Snapchat is more personal. In a way, this is true. Most of people’s snap chats are blurry. Sometimes all black because they are snap chatting before bed. Or my favorite, the floor or wall when “our face is not photogenic enough for the moment” (I am guilty of this). These pictures are not meant to be kept. They aren’t beautiful or noteworthy (unless your snapping your crush, then I bet your camera roll is full of screenshots). But, that is the best part of Snapchat! It’s an everyday communication app. I think it has a zen-like quality to it, that shouldn’t be overlooked.