Mark Zuckerberg introduced broadcast channels on Instagram with his own “Meta Channel”. Broadcast channels are a public one-to-many messaging tool that creators can invite all of their followers into and share text, video and photo updates.
Meta stated that creators can also use voice notes to share their latest updates and behind-the-scenes moments, and even create polls to crowdsource fan feedback. Only creators can send messages in broadcast channels, while followers can react to content and vote in polls.
According to Meta, more features will be added to broadcast channels in the coming months, like the ability to bring another creator into the channel to discuss upcoming collars, crowdsource questions for an “ask me anything” and more.
How Do Broadcast Channels Work?
Once a creator gets access to broadcast channels and sends the first message from their Instagram inbox, their followers will receive a one-time notification to join the channel. Anyone can discover the broadcast channel and view the content, but only followers who join the channel will receive notifications whenever there are updates.
Followers can leave or mute broadcast channels at any time and can also control their notifications from creators by going to a creator’s profile, tapping the bell icon and selecting “broadcast channel”.
Notifications will default to “some,” but this setting can be changed to “all” or “none.” Other than the invitation notification, followers will not get any other notifications about a broadcast channel unless they add the channel to their inbox. Once a channel is added to their inbox, it will appear among other message threads, and notifications will be turned on and function like any other chat.
When a broadcast channel is live, creators can also encourage their followers to join by using the “join channel” sticker in Stories or by pinning the channel link to their profile (coming soon).
TechCrunch reported that the new feature gives creators a new way to update their followers within the app. In the past, creators have usually posted a story to share news and updates with their followers, but they now have the option to use a more direct way to engage with their fans. The feature also lets creators get feedback on certain things and promote their content.
According to TechCrunch, Meta is debuting channels on Instagram first, the company plans to bring the feature to Messenger and Facebook in the coming months (according to Zuckerberg).
Gizmodo reported that Mark Zuckerberg said, “We’re starting to roll out Instagram channels – a new broadcast chat feature.” Zuckerberg continued, “I’m starting a channel to share news and updates on all the products and tech we’re building at Meta. It will be the place where I share Meta product news first.”
In my opinion, it sounds like Instagram Broadcasts could be interesting to people who use Instagram – especially if it provides an alternative to Instagram Stories. It remains to be seen if the feature will be as popular on Facebook or Messenger.