Instagram Makes Intentions Clear

  • Experiment with innovative advertising
  • Working on updated language in the terms
  • Instagram does not claim any ownership rights over your photos

Instagram's co-founder tried to clear the air over the impending changes to its privacy policies and terms of service, saying that the company’s intention is no

  • Experiment with innovative advertising
  • Working on updated language in the terms
  • Instagram does not claim any ownership rights over your photos

Instagram's co-founder tried to clear the air over the impending changes to its privacy policies and terms of service, saying that the company’s intention is not to user photos.

Kevin Systrom addressed advertising on Instagram, ownership rights and privacy settings, and said that confusing language would be modified to make it clear what will happen to users' photos. "Our intention in updating the terms was to communicate that we'd like to experiment with innovative advertising that feels appropriate on Instagram," he wrote.

"Instead it was interpreted by many that we were going to sell your photos to others without any compensation. This is not true and it is our mistake that this language is confusing. To be clear: it is not our intention to sell your photos. We are working on updated language in the terms to make sure this is clear."

According to Systrom, Instagram's advertising vision is for both users and brands to promote their photos and accounts to increase engagement and build more meaningful and relevant followings. If a business wanted to promote itself on Instagram through a promotion, user actions such as following that account or a profile picture might be shown so that others can see who is following that business.

This type of promotion suits Instagram well, especially considering that it is not their style to have banner ads. This is better for the company's third-party marketing strategy and its own revenue-generating goals.

Moreover, Systrom pointed out that there is no intention to use user photos in an advertisement. "We do not have plans for anything like this and because of that we're going to remove the language that raised the question," he wrote.

"Instagram does not claim any ownership rights over your photos. Nothing has changed about the control you have over who can see your photos," Systrom wrote. "If you set your photos to private, Instagram only shares your photos with the people you've approved to follow you."