After a year of lessons and loss, likes are less vital to existence than they were a year ago. Months in isolation resulted in much-needed perspective and fewer Instagrammable pictures, creating the perfect climate to adopt this new feature.
Instagram has reignited a 2019 test initiative to allow users to turn off the like counts on their posts. This change may benefit the platform’s one billion monthly users’ mental health or be a failed attempt to amend an institution of online addiction. For users like me, who can’t even remember when they first started habitually checking likes, this change couldn’t have come at a better time.
The Feb. 3 test round was not widely covered, as news of the app eliminating the story-sharing feature overshadowed the new development. I stumbled upon the 2021 trial when I was trying to edit a post. Tapping on the feature didn’t do anything, but I was sure to screenshot the change. I thought it might have been a random glitch, and when I checked Instagram the next day, the option was no longer there. Stories of similar occurrences circulated on social media for a few days, but the company has not commented. Users replied to the test with mixed sentiments of disappointment as well as support.
The app has been toying with the idea of removing likes for a while, dating back to July 2019. In a tweet, the company stated, “We want your friends to focus on the photos and videos you share, not how many likes they get. You can still see your likes by tapping on the list of people who’ve liked it, but your friends will not be able to see how many likes your post has received.”
According to additional tweets by the company, they tested in many countries, including Australia, Japan and Italy.
The popularity of alternative photo-sharing apps VSCO can be attributed to their lack of likes, creating a platform less centered around judgment and more focused on creative expression. The photo editing software company perfected this formula when they added their social tab in 2016. The likeless platform was trendy for a while with Gen-Z users. Ultimately, the app was too lackluster to compete with the social media giants. Instagram faces the same fate if the company were to remove likes altogether, so the toggle option makes sense. However, with the option to turn likes back on at any second, the new feature is less likely to reach high numbers of permanent adopters.
The trends lean in favor of removing likes, impacting social media trends for years to come. Pre-COVID cries to ‘#MakeInstagramcasualagain’ provide a new land of opportunity for Instagram. Removing likes would rebrand the company as a new kind of social media for a new kind of people in every capacity. This may be an end to the app that birthed ‘IG goals,’ Facetune and influencer culture, and a return to the app’s original mission statement; “to capture and share the world’s moments.”