Instagram Tests 90-Minute 'Features' Videos to Rival YouTube

YouTube pays creators 55% of the ad revenue their videos earn through the Partner Program, and said last year it paid more than $100 billion to creators, artists and media companies over the previous four years. Instagram, by contrast, has no per-view payout at scale. Mosseri said on the Colin and Samir Show that creators on Instagram mainly get paid by brands, with some fan payments and a small performance-based program that the company loses money on.

A Meta spokesperson told TechCrunch that it is "too early to share a long-term monetization model," but that it is exploring ways for creators to earn from brands, fans and Instagram, including performance-based incentives. According to 9to5Google, the lack of any ad-share announcement flooded the comments of the launch video, with users asking why they should post long videos on Instagram when YouTube pays for the same content. Engadget notes Instagram carries over existing ad deals for creators.

This is not Meta's first attempt at long video. Instagram launched IGTV in 2018 and shut it down in 2022 after it failed to gain traction. Mosseri said the new push will "take some time to get right," but that Meta is "very committed to it long term."

For now, Features is a test limited to Brazil and a small number of creators in the US, with no announced availability in Tunisia or the wider region. If you use Instagram in Tunisia, your feed and Reels experience is not expected to change immediately.

The practical effect will depend on whether Meta adds ad sharing for long videos. If it does, creators in Tunisia and the Maghreb who currently publish podcasts or comedy on YouTube could gain a second monetization option. Until then, YouTube remains the platform that pays per view, and Instagram's long-video push is best watched as an experiment rather than a finished product.