IGTV is Back, With a Instagram Reels TV App | Social Media Today

IGTV is back, in a new form, with Instagram testing out a new TV app, which is focused on facilitating Reels watch parties on the bigger screen. As you can see in this example, Instagram’s new TV app is similar in format to YouTube’s CTV UI, with a layout that’s designed to be easy to navigate via more limited TV remote functions. And Reels are the star of the show, with Instagram looking to capitalize on communal viewing. As per IG: “ We’ve heard from our community that watching reels together is more fun, and this test is designed to learn which features make that experience work best on TV. Reels are grouped into channels that match your interests, including new music, sports highlights, hidden travel gems, trending moments, and more.” So, again, Reels is the showcase item here, with Instagram hoping to see similar success to what YouTube has with Shorts in its CTV app. YouTube has previously reported  that its users now watch more than a billion hours of YouTube content on their home TV sets every day, while views of Shorts on TV grew by 100% over the past year. According to Nielsen, Y ouTube is now
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