- Chinese-owned platform to launch rival app to Instagram, probably to be called Notes
- Design and release date of the app are yet to be confirmed
- Instagram is the most used social media app by US adults aged 18-29, with TikTok in third place
TikTok has announced that it is planning to launch a dedicated photo sharing app, which is likely to be called Notes.
Already, some TikTok users have had notifications saying photo-based posts will be shared to ‘TikTok notes’ unless they specifically opt out – although TikTok has yet to reveal when it plans to launch the app. Likewise the design of the app has not been finalized.
The new app will be seen as a direct competitor to Meta’s Instagram, and is the latest example of social media platforms imitating each other; Instagram launched Reels, a video tool similar to TikTok, in 2020.
TikTok users can already upload and share series of photographs in posts with sounds, but it appears that this new app will allow for individual images to be shared.
Instagram is currently the most popular social media app in the US among adults aged 18-29, according to a Pew Research survey published in January, with 78% of those surveyed saying they use the app. Meanwhile 62% said they used Tiktok, making it the third most popular social media app used by young adults in the US, behind Snapchat.
TikTok, which is owned by Chinese company ByteDance, could still be banned in the US over ongoing security concerns over the app’s sharing of users’ information with its parent. A bill that could see TikTok banned or forced to be sold to another company is currently making its way through the House of Representatives.
