Instagram Testing ‘New Posts’ Button for Timeline, Revises Feed Algorithm

Instagram has announced new changes are coming to your main feed, to “give you more control over your feed and ensure the posts you see are timely.”

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According to the social network, they’re listening to customer feedback about how the feed refreshes automatically and takes you back to the top, so to change that, they are set to introduce a “New Posts” button, starting today.

This new feature will let users control when they want their feed to refresh. If you tap the button, your feed refreshes, otherwise it stays where you are.

Instagram also says “we’re also making changes to ensure that newer posts are more likely to appear first in feed.” The company says this means the latest posts from your friends will ensure “you won’t miss the moments you care about.”

The company says more improvements are coming to the feed “over the next few months”, saying “Our goal is to be the best place to share and connect with the people and interests that matter most to you.”

We’re not seeing the ‘New Posts’ button yet in Canada, but it should be out soon. Let us know if you spot it.

Back in 2016, Instagram changed its feed algorithm to show posts based on user interests, similar to Facebook. Since then, users and businesses have complained the change has resulted in people missing posts from friends and more. These new changes announced today should help revert back to the old days of a chronological timeline.

With parent company Facebook facing heavy scrutiny over its involvement with the Cambridge Analytica privacy scandal, the company appears to be rolling out changes across its various platforms, in efforts to reassure users it listens to feedback. We recently saw Messenger gain admin privileges and also CEO Mark Zuckerberg apologize for the company’s handling of user data.

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