Instagram has a billion users currently which is impressive but it has the potential to score more users and a good way is to target the unconnected populations or in developing nations.
Well it seems they have the same idea since they’ve quietly launched Instagram Lite on the Play Store as spotted by TechCrunch. “The Instagram Lite app is small, allowing you to save space on your phone and download it quickly,” they describe it on the app description page.
The app requires Android 5.0 and up and on the app description, it is smaller than an MB (573kb) and this is perfect for those users who have phones with tiny internal storage capacities.
According to the publication, a spokesperson from the company confirmed that Instagram Lite began testing in Mexico this week. That is why you’d most likely get a “This item isn’t available in your country” notice when you click on the link above provided to the app’s page.
Apparently the app will expand to more countries and get messaging and video posting capabilities later this year, which means the app is currently only for posting photos and viewing Stories.
This follows well with the other developments being made on the Instagram ecosystem. Instagram TV (IGTV) was released recently and although the vertical only requirement has been controversial, a lot of creators are embracing the new platform. Couple that with the rollout of group video calls and the continuous addition of new features on Stories, Instagram has become Facebook’s new way to appeal to the masses.
