Instagram is testing a long-form video format called Features. Here is what it is, why it matters and what is still unknown.
What Instagram announced
On 26 October 2026, Instagram announced a test of a new format called Features, which lets selected creators upload horizontal (widescreen) videos of up to 90 minutes. The platform has built its identity around short vertical Reels, so the move marks a notable change of direction. Instagram head Adam Mosseri and Vice President of Product Tessa Lyons presented the idea in a video announcement.
The format is aimed at creators who work in longer shapes: podcasters, interviewers, comedians and others whose content does not fit comfortably into a clip of a minute or two. Coverage in outlets including TechCrunch, 9to5Mac and The Hollywood Reporter describes it as a direct attempt to win some of the audience and creator attention that currently sits on YouTube.
How the feature works
Based on reporting so far, the system has several parts:
- Features (long videos): Creators upload horizontal videos that can run up to 90 minutes. These longer videos can appear in places such as the Explore page.
- Clips as Reels: Creators can cut highlights from a long video and publish them as Reels. A viewer who likes a clip can tap through to the full-length video, so short content acts as a trailer for long content.
- TV app integration: Viewers can save a long video and continue watching it on Instagram’s TV app, which is available on Samsung, Fire TV and Google TV, with Apple TV support expanding in the US. The feature starts on mobile, but Instagram says it wants longer content to be watched on the big screen over time.
- Episodic content: Instagram is also testing a section on a creator’s profile that organises serialised Reels as a connected series, and is working on better discovery for Live video.
Where it is being tested
The test began in Brazil and is expanding to a small group of creators in the United States. Instagram has not announced a timetable for wider availability. Regional outlets in the Gulf and Nigeria have reported that there is no confirmed date for their markets, so for most creators this remains something to watch rather than use.
Why Instagram is doing this now
The short-form ceiling
Short vertical video defined social media in the 2020s, and nearly every major platform chased it, including professional networks such as LinkedIn. But short clips are hard to monetise directly. There is little room for ads inside a 20-second video, and many creators treat Reels and similar formats mainly as advertising for their work elsewhere.
Mosseri has acknowledged this tension. He has described three ways creators get paid: by the platform, by fans, and by brands. On Instagram, he said, creators are mostly paid by brands, with some fan income and a small performance-based programme, and he noted that the platform has spent more on such payouts than it earns back. In that light, a format that supports longer videos, and potentially ads, looks like a route to a more sustainable creator economy.
Competing with YouTube
YouTube is widely seen as the most lucrative platform for creators. Its Partner Program shares ad revenue with creators, with a 55 percent creator share for qualifying long-form videos, and YouTube has said it has paid out more than $100 billion to creators, artists and media companies over four years. Podcasters in particular have moved their video shows to YouTube. Instagram would prefer that fans watch a creator’s long and short content in one app, rather than being sent to YouTube for the full version.
A change of mind
Mosseri has said he was long opposed to long-form video on Instagram, partly because short content generates more shares and direct messages among friends. Tessa Lyons argued for giving long-form another attempt, and the team is now describing short and long video as complementary rather than rivals. Reels, they say, remain central to Instagram.
Haven’t we seen this before? IGTV
Instagram has tried long video before. IGTV launched in 2018 and was discontinued in 2022. It struggled to build a habit among users, in part because it sat apart from the main feed and had weaker discovery and monetisation than competitors. The new approach tries to address those problems by linking long videos to Reels, surfacing them in Explore and extending them to TV screens, rather than hiding them in a separate corner of the app.
What it could mean for creators
Potential upsides
- A way to turn an existing Instagram following into viewers for long content, without relying on external links.
- Short clips that point directly to full episodes, which could improve discovery.
- A possible future monetisation route if Instagram adds ads or performance-based payments to long videos.
- Reduced need to maintain separate audiences on several platforms.
Open questions
- Money: A Meta spokesperson told TechCrunch that it is too early to share a long-term monetisation model, though the company is exploring ways for creators to earn from brands, fans and Instagram itself, including performance-based incentives. Meta, whose business depends on advertising, may add ads to long videos, but nothing has been confirmed.
- Audience habits: Many Instagram users are accustomed to quick scrolling. Whether they will sit through a long episode inside the app is untested.
- Discovery and ranking: Creators will want to know how the algorithm treats long videos compared with Reels.
- Tools: Features that long-form creators rely on, such as chapters, detailed analytics and captions, may or may not arrive.
What it could mean for viewers and brands
For viewers, the change could mean more full interviews, podcasts and shows inside Instagram, with the option to watch on a TV. For brands and advertisers, longer videos offer more time for sponsorship integrations and, if Meta introduces ad slots, new advertising inventory. It could also reshape how marketers split budgets between Instagram and YouTube.
Bottom line
Instagram’s 90-minute Features test is a clear sign that the platform no longer wants to be only a home for short clips. By pairing long videos with Reels, Explore and a TV app, it is making a more serious attempt at long-form than it did with IGTV. Whether it succeeds will depend largely on one thing the company has not yet answered: how creators will be paid. Until Instagram shares a monetisation plan and a wider rollout date, the test is promising but unproven.
Information in this article is based on reporting from TechCrunch, 9to5Mac, The Hollywood Reporter and other outlets as of early November 2026. The feature is in testing and details may change.
