History of Instagram

Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms around today, with over a million active users each day, and over 500 million monthly active users. Launched in 2010, Instagram has remained a prominent force in the social media sphere, due to its unique combination of a strong community and high-production value content.

Here, we'll tell you everything you need to know about the history of the popular photo-sharing and social media platform, including its controversial peak, as well as its subsequent downtrend.

Early Days

The idea for Instagram came to Adam McDowell, Mikey Krempels, and Casey Neistat while they were at Yale University in 2010. The three had been friends since their freshman year and had built a small studio in their apartment where they would shoot parties, weddings, and music videos. They decided to leave school and pursue their passions of photography and videography full-time, after which they named their company, Paper, and began offering their services as professional photographers and videographers to the public.

In order to attract and retain customers, the three friends worked out a secret formula: quality and value for the dollar. With this approach, they were able to offer unique, high-quality goods to their customers at affordable prices, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Paper

The birth of Instagram is marked by a series of distinctive events and product launches that led to the creation of a new category: luxury photo-sharing apps. The seeds of Instagram were first planted back in 2012, when Paper, the secret formula for attracting and retaining customers, was incorporated and launched as a standalone app. Over the next few years, Paper grew from a simple photo-sharing platform to a full-fledged social media network, with multiple options for users to share and interact with content.

One of the key turning points in Paper's development was the 2014 launch of Amplify. Designed for iOS 7, Amplify allowed users to selectively spread their content across multiple platforms, including Instagram. With this update, those with access to the iOS platform could begin experiencing the growing pains that would lead to the creation of their own standalone app: Instagram.

Instagram

Instagram was officially launched in October 2010 in New York City. The three founders — Adam McDowell, Mikey Krempels, and Casey Neistat — pitched the idea of Instagram to Apple Inc. during a company conference. They described a simple but unique idea: a news app that organizes the world's news stories by using the smartphone's camera to scan a barcode, identifying the article that the user is interested in, and displaying it to them as soon as they open the app.

To Apple's delight, they were able to pitch a product that would help them grow their company's professional photo-sharing platform, Apple Photos.

The idea for Instagram originated with Apple, which provided the initial funding for the startup. The two companies also became joint-venture partners, with Apple taking a 49 percent stake in the company. In turn, Instagram became a wholly owned subsidiary of Apple Inc.

After its initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange in mid-2014, the price of an Instagram share jumped from $13.85 to $17.22. This was largely due to the success of the company's recently released iPhone 6 and 6 Plus models, as well as the increasing popularity of the app.

The next big turning point in Instagram's development came with the 2017 launch of its standalone app, which allowed users to post to all of their social media platforms from one place. The aim of this feature was to make the app more attractive to consumers, by uniting all of the user's social media platforms under one roof. This move was aimed at boosting Instagram's already powerful user base, with the potential to create a new generation of connected consumers.

Inevitable Controversies

As with any important new social media app, Instagram was met with skepticism and a backlash from traditional media companies, concerned about how this new platform would impact their status and influence. What's more, the app's success at attracting younger audiences and gaining popularity among Gen Z led to criticism that it was glorifying negativity and narcissism.

This is not to say that Instagram is a negative app. Far from it. Quite the opposite. What it means is that the app's early users — and there are many, many #winning tribes on Instagram — were able to tap into a previously undiscovered digital goldmine and create a community that would last a lifetime. While the app offers plenty of negativity and narcissism, you will still find the odd inspirational quote or funny meme if you know where to look.

The negative press that greeted Instagram in its early days was due to a combination of factors. First, the app's success at gaining traction with Gen Z prompted the New York Times to run a story questioning whether or not this was a bad thing. Next, a number of media companies saw Instagram as a threat, since it was slowly but surely replacing their traditional business models and carving out a new space in the market.

In order to combat these criticisms and controversies, Instagram founders began spending more time in the media, speaking at conferences, publishing books, and appearing on podcasts.

A Downturn

Since its peak in early 2014, the price of an Instagram share has steadily declined, trading at just $3.71 as of this writing. This is largely due to a number of economic and industry-wide factors. An overabundance of supply has led to significant downward pressure on prices, along with increased competition and the growing popularity of TikTok, a similar app that allows users to post and share short video clips.

TikTok's explosive popularity led to a significant decrease in the price of video game shares, too. Games, like Pokémon Go, have been popularized through social media platforms like TikTok, and as a result, have become cheaper to own.

Where Does Instagram Go From Here?

With over 500 million monthly active users and a 26.3% decline in the price of its shares, it's clear that the future of Instagram is less certain than ever. In 2020, the platform is in a state of flux, as it evolves to meet the needs of a new generation of users and content creators.

Instagram is currently in the midst of a massive redesign, aimed at uniting users, boosting discoverability, and encouraging them to post more often. The platform is also expanding its content, partnering with prominent brands, and introducing new features, all aimed at encouraging users to spend more time on the app.