Instagram is continuously improving its stories segment by adding features to improve engagement on the platform.
The company is now testing adding timers to stories, indicating how much time is left before the story disappears. Stories typically last for 24 hours. The timers will come underneath the stories bubble letting users know how long the story will be up.
Instagram is hoping that by doing this, more people will be prompted to view stories due to the Fear of Missing Out (FOMO)
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The new feature being tested was announced on Twitter by a few users who had spotted it on their platforms.
This year alone, Instagram has added music lyrics, polls, gifs, colourful icons for Story camera modes, questions, hashtags and more to its Stories segment in a bid to keep its 500 million users engaged.
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At some point, the Facebook owned platform started testing double stories by placing them on double rows on the homepage.
Instagram said it would be focusing more on its stories section as more users were now using the function for a business and interaction. The platform recently overhauled its home page, giving prominence to Reels and Shops, some of its latest additions.
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