Fez — Instagram is looking at ways to bring its short videos to the biggest screen in the house. Speaking at a media conference in Los Angeles, Head of Instagram Adam Mosseri said the platform is “exploring” a dedicated TV app to make it easier to watch Instagram videos on television.
He did not share a launch date or product details, but noted that IG’s current vertical videos could translate well to TV viewing. Mosseri also said the company is not planning to license live sports or Hollywood exclusives as part of this push.
The move fits Instagram’s broader shift toward video and private messaging as it competes with TikTok and YouTube for time and attention.
In recent months, Instagram has given Reels more prominent placement in the app and rolled out an iPad app that opens directly into Reels in some regions, signaling how central short video has become to the experience.
Instagram’s scale gives any TV effort a running start. The platform recently passed 3 billion monthly users, according to Meta, a milestone that underscores how widely its content travels across the world.
A TV app would likely focus on discovery and lean-back viewing rather than premium rights, positioning Instagram closer to YouTube’s living-room experience than to sports-heavy streamers.
For creators, a TV surface could mean longer watch sessions, more ways to package playlists, and fresh ad inventory for brand deals. For viewers, it could turn casual scrolling into a shared couch activity, especially for reels compilations, creator shows, or live broadcasts.
Still, big questions remain: how vertical formats will be framed on TV, what moderation and recommendation controls will look like on the big screen, and whether Instagram will add creator-friendly tools like channel pages or series navigation to make television viewing feel natural.
If the trend keeps shifting to living-room screens, Instagram’s logic is simple: meet viewers where they are. With TikTok also pushing longer clips and YouTube already available on smart TVs, Instagram’s possible TV app is less a surprise than the next step in the race to own short-video viewing everywhere—from phones to the family room.
