Instagram is an American photo and video-sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It was launched in October 2010 by Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger and was acquired by Facebook Inc. in April 2012 for approximately US$1 billion in cash and stock.
Features
Instagram allows users to upload photos and videos, which can be edited with various filters and organized using hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can be shared publicly or with preapproved followers. The platform supports 32 languages and has evolved over the years to include features such as messaging, multiple images or videos in a single post, and the Stories feature, which is used by 500 million people daily as of January 2019.
Availability
Instagram is available on iOS, Android, Windows 10, and the web, allowing users to capture moments, apply filters, and share content across various platforms.
User Base
Instagram’s user base grew rapidly, reaching one million registered users in two months, 10 million in a year, and 1 billion by June 2018. As of October 2015, over 40 billion photos had been uploaded to the platform.
Founding
Instagram was founded by Kevin Systrom, a Stanford University graduate. The roots of Instagram can be traced back to Systrom’s previous work at Google and an earlier project called Burbn. In March 2010, Systrom secured $500,000 in seed funding from Baseline Ventures and Andreessen Horowitz, which propelled the development of Instagram.