Instagram Tests Long-Form Horizontal Video in Push to Rival YouTube

Instagram announced on Monday that it is testing horizontal videos of up to 90 minutes in the United States, marking a major strategic shift toward long-form content.

The new product, called Features, is available to a limited group of creators in the U.S. and Brazil, including podcast hosts and comedians.

The platform aims to capture a larger share of consumer viewing hours and compete directly with YouTube, which dominates creator monetization through ad revenue sharing.

“For a long time, I have been against doing long-form video on Instagram,” said Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, in a video announcement.

Mosseri explained that shorter content traditionally drives more direct shares and messages among users, raising initial concerns about shifting toward longer formats.

“What you’re now going to be able to do is, you see a clip of a podcast that you love, you can just click and continue watching or watch the full video,” said Tessa Lyons, vice president of product at Instagram.

Instagram is also expanding its television app to Apple TV in the U.S., joining existing availability on Samsung, Fire TV and Google TV devices.

The platform is testing additional tools, including a Series feature for episodic content and direct linking between short Reels and long-form videos.

While YouTube offers creators 55 percent of ad revenue through its partner program, Instagram has not yet finalized a long-term monetization model for the new videos.

“It’s too early to share a long-term monetization model, but we’re exploring ways for creators to earn from brands, fans and Instagram,” a Meta spokesperson said, according to TechCrunch.

Instagram plans to expand the Features test to tens of thousands of creators in the U.S. and bring episodic tools to more countries in the coming months.