It might be time for Instagram to become as vintage and outdated as the film that it tries to mimic with filters. After two bad PR moves by Instagram, it’s clear that Twitter should be the new photo sharing go-to.
The most recent misstep by Instagram is a proposed updated “Terms of Use” that the photo editing and sharing service was to be implemented on Jan. 16. The catch that everyone has noticed is a clause stating the user must “agree that a business or other entity may pay us to display your username, likeness, photos (along with any associated metadata), and/or actions you take, in connection with paid or sponsored content or promotions, without any compensation to you,” according to its “Terms of Use.”
In the wake of the bad PR, Instagram co-founder and CEO Kevin Systrom released a statement on Instagram’s blog on Tuesday explaining that the language was misrepresentative of Instagrams overall goals to help improve the experience.
“Instead it was interpreted by many that we were going to sell your photos to others without any compensation,” Systrom said in the post. “This is not true and it is our mistake that this language is confusing. To be clear: it is not our intention to sell your photos.”
While Instagram has clarified its stance and later in the post said that the language would be changed, it still looks bad for the company to even have to clarify.
The other move Instagram made was to stop supporting something called “Twitter cards.” These “cards” allowed Instagram photos to show up in Twitter without clicking on any links. It should also be noted that Instagram is owned by Facebook, and Facebook and Twitter are seen as competing services.
According to tech blog The Verge, at a Dec. 5 tech conference Systrom claimed that “this isn’t actually a consequence of us getting acquired (by Facebook,)” but it is still worth noting.
Those who wish to share via Twitter will have to take the extra steps of selecting the link, being taken to a new page, then going back to their Twitter feed. In our new social media world, that is forever, especially when the photo may still be completely boring.
These new directions for Instagram have led some to think about deleting their Instagram account. Well good luck. While the service is only functional via its app, it does not allow accounts to be deleted via its app. Those looking to delete their account must visit a different page.
But fear not, there is a solution to this Instagram mess.
In what had to be a great bit of luck for Twitter, soon after Instagram stopped supporting Twitter cards, Twitter updated its mobile app to include photo editing with a few vintage filters of its own.
While there aren’t as many filters, the service is comparable and less of a headache. Post straight to Twitter, still hashtag everything, you don’t have to crop the photos to a square. And if you want, you can always save the photo and post it on Facebook.
With Instagram dropping Twitter support and causing so much user confusion, it might be worth it to pick up Twitter as your new vintage photo editor.
