Why Instagram Is Becoming Facebook’s Next Facebook - The New York Times

Final paragraphs from an extensive Instagram profile

"“I don’t know much about the history of cars, but let’s say the Model T was the first car,” he said. “So what do you think the first car company other than Ford was thinking? Are we copying Ford, or is this a new mode of transportation that everyone is going to have different takes on?”

This can sound a little too defensive, but it’s not exactly wrong. If you compare how Stories works on Instagram with how it works on Snapchat, they are indeed similar. But the context of the two apps — the fact that Instagram tends to foster larger, more public networks in which people maintain a more polished profile, while Snapchat encourages a smaller, more intimate network — does change the nature of the format. Stories on Instagram feels different from Stories on Snapchat because there are different people on both networks using it for different purposes.

And for me, the Instagram version often offers a superior experience for one obvious reason: I know more people there, and you most likely do, too."

Why Instagram Is Becoming Facebook’s Next Facebook - The New York Times