Instagram will soon offer Usage Insights, which will show you how much of your precious time you're spending posting selfies and admiring pictures of other people's brunch.
After the code was discovered in Instagram's Android app, the company's CEO Kevin Systrom confirmed to TechCrunch that the feature is coming soon.
It's true. RT @TechCrunch: Code buried in Instagram’s Android app reveals a “Usage Insights” feature that will show users their “time spent” https://t.co/1Lt3DgIFEjMay 16, 2018
When most sites are clamoring harder than ever for your time and clicks, it's interesting that Instagram is building a tool that might actually cause some users to put down their phones for a while and take a break from tapping and swiping.
"We’re building tools that will help the IG community know more about the time they spend on Instagram – any time should be positive and intentional," said Systrom.
"Understanding how time online impacts people is important, and it’s the responsibility of all companies to be honest about this. We want to be part of the solution. I take that responsibility seriously."
That sounds a lot like the pledge Instagram's parent company Facebook made in January: to make sure that clicking around on the site is a good use of your time (before it got sidetracked by that little data mishap).
Instagram's audience is considerably younger than Facebook's, so it's good to see it taking the lead. We'll be watching closely to see whether other companies popular with younger users, such as Snapchat, take a similar stance.
