Instagram may soon let everyone share links on their Stories – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Facebook-owned Instagram has only allowed a limited number of people to post links on Instagram stories. But the company is now planning to change this. According to a report by The Verge, Instagram has started a new test which will enable more users to add links to their Instagram stories.
As reported by the Verge, the links given in the Instagram Stories will operate in a different manner. The links will not appear with the ‘swipe-up’ option, instead it will appear as a linking sticker on the story. So, users will have to tap on the link to follow the link. The report adds that people will also be able to respond to these stories that come with a link sticker, which is presently not allowed.
Vishal Shah, Instagram’s Head of Product, told The Verge that the company is testing the feature with a small group of users as it wants to learn how people “might take advantage of the links”.
Instagram will also keep a check on the kinds of links people share and will keep a check on spam and misinformation. Shah also added that the new stickers “fit more into the current way people use the platform, so he says this test “brings links into the same kind of overall system, which from a simplicity of system perspective, also makes a lot of sense.”
Shah also said, “link stickers are the eventual goal for Instagram, whether that be for everyone or just people who already have linking privileges. That is the sort of future system we would like to get to. And that’s what we hope to roll out, if we’re able to make this work.”
The report reveals that the test is targeted towards Instagram users “who’ve found a voice and reach on the platform, but maybe not to the levels that Instagram requires to gain swipe-up privileges.”