Prepare to start spending money to access your fave influencers’ skincare routines/avocado toast reviews/aesthetic pictures of unaesthetic places ‘cos Instagram is launching a paid subscription trial in Australia. It’s giving OnlyFans but way less fun.
Instagram previously launched the subscriber trial to certain creators in the US back in early 2022. They then expanded that initial trial to 1000 creators back in June — including Cole Sprouse and Skai Jackson. Good for them, I guess.
“In July, we rolled out phase two of subscriptions by adding subscriber chats, home, posts and reels to the existing subscription features,” Meta said, per Sky News.
“Now, we’re announcing open access in the US, and expanding via invite-only to more countries including Australia, UK and Canada.”
Basically, creators can set a certain monthly subscription price. Their subscribers then have access to exclusive content, like Insta Lives, Reels, badges and such.
I’m sure if you’re a mega-fan of a particular celeb or influencer this is cool, but frankly it’s already a chore getting through the Stories and Reels of people I know and like in real life.
Meta says the subscriptions will help creators establish a consistent monthly income and help foster “meaningful connections” with fans by creating an exclusive “space”.
According to SkyNews, being a subscriber of a certain account means you’ll have a special badge next to your handle — that means you’re able to “stand out” in the comment section or DMs. Creators can also filter their DMs so subscriber messages are prioritised.
Iiiiinteresting. Perhaps this is the way I convince Niall Horan to re-record all of One Direction’s old bangers, starting with “Up All Night”. I take it all back, maybe Instagram subscriptions are good.
I won’t lie, Instagram has been trialling a bunch of zany stuff this year and I’m not 100 per cent convinced it’s working for the app.
However, I am into the concept of Instagram letting you add a song to your bio a lá MySpace. Who will win the most esoteric Insta bio song contest? Start prepping your favourite obscure Tiny Desk concerts in advance.
It’ll be interesting to see how the subscription model shakes out in Australia, and which influencers are invited to take part. Surely at least one of the Married At First Sight cast, right? I tremble in fear at the possibilities.
