Instagram is making a bid to capture mobile attention on IGTV (FB)

Instagram is reportedly adding one-minute previews of IGTV content into the apps main feed, in a bid to attract more users to the video hub, per The Verge.

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Launched last June, the mobile-first video hub features longer-form videos uploaded by users of up to 10 minutes, and videos up to 60 minutes long from creators.

So far, IGTV has seemingly struggled to gain traction among the apps 1 billion users, and Instagram is hoping to drive eyeballs to it by giving it more prominent in-feed placement.

IGTV is aiming to capitalize on a growing shift to media consumption on mobile devices in a bid to capture ad spend thats flowing to mobile video and social.

Mobile video ad spend jumped 54% to $6.2 billion in 2017, marking the first time that mobile video ad revenue surpassed desktop video, per IAB/PwC 2018 estimates. Instagram stands to absorb a rich share of those dollars the social app's usage could account for nearly a quarter (24%) of the average US users total time spent on mobile.

While IGTV has yet to take off, it's not because Instagram users don't like to watch video on the platform: Instagrammers watched 60% more video as of mid-June versus the prior year. With average time spent per day on mobile devices among US adults is projected to eclipse time spent with TV this year, with 223 minutes going to mobile devices versus 222 to TV, per eMarketer, the mobile video market is likely to only become more lucrative.

IGTV hasnt yet monetized with ads, likely because it hasn't captured user attention in any significant way.Despite launching with a raft of high-profile creators and influencers like Kim Kardashian West and Kevin Hart, users havent gravitated to the platform. First, IGTV is relatively hidden within the core Instagram app, and users already habituated to other sections of the app like Explore or Stories might not be enticed to click the IGTV icon to consume additional content.

IGTVs user experience may also be lagging. The section features both user-generated and creator or branded content, offering a random experience of poor-quality DIY video alongside more professionally produced video. Further, IGTV has already encountered hazards including videos depicting child abuse, per Business Insider.

Further cluttering users' feeds is unlikely to be an effective way of scaling IGTV usage, and could backfire.Users feeds are already cluttered with ads. Forced engagement with additional content, particularly video, that aren't friends' posts is likely to further estrange users, which could make this attempt a short-lived experiment.