Instagram announced in June 2026 that it is expanding its TV app with longer-form videos, episodic series, and live creator experiences, as the platform moves to compete with streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video for living room viewing.
The TV app, which Instagram launched last year, is also being rolled out to Samsung TVs. It was previously available on Amazon Fire and Google TVs. Alongside the expansion, Instagram is introducing several new features: personalized channels, the ability to cast content from a phone to a TV, support for horizontal videos, and access to Stories within the TV app.
When users open the app, they will see channels tailored to creators and topics they follow, covering categories such as comedy, sports, and specific creators. Instagram says the channels are designed to make it easier to find content to watch together. A dedicated section for horizontal videos is also being added to better suit TV viewing.
Users can now cast Reels or saved content directly from their phone to their TV. Stories, which were previously unavailable in the TV app, can now also be viewed natively within it.
The TV app expansion follows a separate development earlier in June 2026, when Meta began testing a “Series” feature for Reels on both Instagram and Facebook, designed to make serialized content easier to follow.
Instagram has long competed with TikTok and YouTube for short-form video audiences. The move into longer-form and episodic formats suggests the platform is looking to extend that competition into the living room, where streaming services currently dominate viewing habits.
Source: TechCrunch