Snapchat was launched approximately four years ago in 2013. The app pioneered the concept of posts which only lasted 24 hours long. Snapchat built quite a sizable user base over the past couple of years, till Instagram Stories came along. Launched less than a year ago back in August 2016, Instagram Stories has now become the biggest Snapchat copy cat ever, mirroring Snapchat’s features from head to toe when it first started. And now Instagram is boasting 1.5 times more daily active users than Snapchat.
Facebook’s global head of sales Carolyn Everson told CNBC that Instagram Stories now has a 250 million strong crowd of daily active users. Instagram Stories reportedly surpassed Snapchat’s number of daily active users in April when it hit the 200 million mark. Snapchat’s growth has definitely received a significant impact from Instagram Stories, recording 166 million active users as of last month.
According to CNBC, Everson also denied allegations that Instagram copied Snapchat when it comes to Instagram Stories. She claimed that Facebook invented the feed format, which is now used by competitors alike. However, we all do know how much has been copied by Instagram from Snapchat.
Nevertheless, Snapchat definitely has to figure something out in order to withstand further competition by Instagram. Sounds like a really unfair playground for Snapchat now, doesn’t it?