The Photo Map feature, which allows Instagram users to see where they have taken pictures around the world, is fast going to be removed from the app.
Instagram has already confirmed that this will be carried out due to reduced interest among the Instagram community with regard to this feature. The popular photo-sharing app has already started removing the feature on a few users’ phones since last week.
Instagram is killing photo maps feature
As of now, people can see their own map of photos, but that won’t last very long.
“Photo Map was not widely used, so we’ve decided to remove the feature and focus on other priorities,” Instagram said in a statement.
Instagram tasted much success with Photo Map and location-based checking in during the initial days. But with changing times and new apps, Instagram wants to remain relevant and ditch the ideas of the old and swap it with the new – i.e., Stories for Instagram. And yes, now it’s rival is Snapchat.
So here’s what else is going to change for Instagram. Geo-tagging will still be there, so users can click on the location of a post to see similar images that were taken in that location. Phew!
But, now there won’t be a separate tab for users who have been geo-tagged on the world map, which is pretty sad – especially for those jet-setting users who just love to let the world know where they’ve just landed.
This will, in no way affect the API of the app, and will allow companies’ ads to focus on the location of the user and tailor make ads to them. Although, this will make Instagram lose its charm by omitting one of its original features for a borrowed feature.
Let’s hope that Instagram doesn’t stray too much away from its core features, because that’s what the platform is all about. With Stories, Instagram is putting quite a few of its eggs into that basket and whether they’ll drop the basket or not, only time will tell.
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