Instagram changes its algorithm to curb TikToks to Reels
Original content will now be prioritized over reposts in the app’s algorithm.
The platform’s head, Adam Mosseri, announced Wednesday that Instagram will change its algorithm to promote original content. Mosseri said the change is focused on “the idea of originality.” But Mosseri didn’t mention that the change is also meant to prevent people from uploading TikToks to Instagram Reels, which must annoy Instagram executives endlessly.
According to a spokesperson for Instagram, its ranking algorithm will now prioritize original content in places such as the Reels and Feed tabs over reposted content. Basically, you’ll see less of the TikTok logo.
“If you create something from scratch, you should get more credit than if you are resharing something that you found from someone else,” Mosseri added. “We’re going to do more to try and value original content more, particularly compared to reposted content.”
According to TechCrunch, the algorithm will also stop showing Reels and posts that have already been shared on the app, so you won’t see the same thing over and over. Content that has been reposted is less likely to be recommended to other users, as are accounts that repost content. In a follow-up tweet, Mosseri said Instagram already does this, but is expanding its use so as not to “overvalue aggregators.”
What will this look like? Mosseri said that the company “can’t know for sure.” The app builds “classifiers” to predict originality based on factors like who is in the video and if they have seen it before, “but that’s not knowing,” he explained.
Instagram tested removing the “recent” tab from the hashtag page as part of its effort to display “more interesting and relevant content.” Users involved in the test will now see just two tabs: Top, which displays the most popular content, and Reels, which displays video content.