In a bid to promote mental health, Instagram has been testing a new feature that allows users to hide like counts on the platform. This feature was however limited to few accounts in few countries but the Facebook-owned company recently announced that it will be making the feature global for more accounts.
In addition, we understand that like counts are important for many creators, and we are actively thinking through ways for creators to communicate value to their partners.
— Instagram (@instagram) November 14, 2019
The Instagram ‘hide like counts’ feature grants users’ access to hide the like counts of their posts from public view. It is important to note that Instagram is not eradicating the like feature, rather it is just hiding like counts. The feature will hide the total number of likes but the user will still have access to view the number of people who liked his/her posts. In essence, the like count feature will become a private feature.
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Before now, the feature had been available since July in Ireland, Italy, Japan, Brazil, Australia, and New Zealand. The global access will remain a test for some users who will be notified about the feature. However, the platform will remain the same for users who have not been notified.
Instagram opted for this feature to help promote mental well-being. The reason being that most users feed are often flooded with pictures of flashy lifestyles and wealth which often gain most likes. This pushes underprivileged users to scamper for similar content to generate likes. This struggle creates a popularity contest which Instagram aims to take away.
This feature didn’t go down well with social media influencers and creators’ who rely on the likes to prove how followers relate with their posts. Instagram has however revealed that they are planning to create a means for creators to relate with their partners.
Starting today, we’re expanding our test of private like counts globally. If you’re in the test, you’ll no longer see the total number of likes and views on photos and videos posted to Feed unless they’re your own. pic.twitter.com/DztSH0xiq2
— Instagram (@instagram) November 14, 2019