Instagram Pivots to Long-Form Horizontal Video with ‘Features’: Up to 90-Minute Uploads, Linked Reels, and Living Room TV Ambitions

After spending years encouraging creators to produce snappy, short-form vertical Reels, Instagram is officially heading in the opposite direction. On October 26, 2026, Meta announced Features, a dedicated video format engineered explicitly for long-form, horizontal (widescreen) content.

Currently rolling out in testing across Brazil and expanding to tens of thousands of creators in the United States, the format allows uploads of up to 90 minutes-putting the platform into direct competition with YouTube. The pivot marks a significant change in philosophy for the platform.

Speaking on The Colin and Samir Show, Instagram Head Adam Mosseri acknowledged his historical hesitation toward long-form media, having previously championed quick discovery: “I have been against doing long-form video on Instagram.”

However, user retention dynamics and creator workflows have pushed Meta to bridge the gap between snackable hooks and full-length storytelling.

Rather than sending users off-platform to external video sites to watch full podcasts, in-depth interviews, or tech teardowns, Instagram wants the entire viewer journey contained within its ecosystem.

What Is ‘Features’? The 90-Minute Horizontal Shift

The newly introduced format represents a departure from the 9:16 vertical feeds that dominate Instagram today:

• Horizontal Widescreen Layout: Moving away from the vertical crop, Features are uploaded and displayed in standard 16:9 widescreen orientation. When opened on a mobile device, tapping fullscreen rotates the player into a landscape view with playback scrubbing, variable speed controls, and chapter support.
• Up to 90-Minute Upload Ceilings: While standard in-app Reels cap out at 20 minutes (with the recommendation algorithm heavily throttling distribution for clips past 3 minutes), Features expands the technical boundary to 90 minutes.
• Target Content Types: Meta is explicitly courting creators producing video podcasts, investigative video essays, multi-course cooking tutorials, stand-up comedy sets, and tech product breakdowns-genres that lose narrative pacing when chopped into 60-second bites.

The Bridge Mechanism: “Linked Reels” for Discovery

One of the main hurdles facing previous long-form attempts on mobile platforms (such as the defunct IGTV standalone app) was discovery. To solve this, Instagram has architected a companion system called Linked Reels (also tested as Clips as Reels):

• Shorts as Discovery Funnels: Creators can post bite-sized, vertical Reels that highlight the punchiest hook or quote from their extended video.
• Up to Eight Linked Anchors: A creator can link up to eight individual Reels directly to a single 90-minute Feature.
• Seamless One-Tap Jump: When a user encounters a promotional clip in the standard algorithmic Reels feed, a persistent on-screen button prompts them to “Watch Full Video”. Tapping it immediately transitions the playback directly into the matching timestamp of the full widescreen Feature without leaving the app.

The Living Room Ambition: Expanding the Instagram TV App

Long-form video consumption habits differ fundamentally from mobile scrolling; viewers watching 40-to-90-minute media typically prefer lean-back, big-screen environments. Recognizing this, Meta is pairing the launch of Features with a hardware rollout:

• Apple TV and Smart TV App Deployment: Instagram’s dedicated television app is rolling out to Apple TV in the United States, with support across Google TV and Fire TV devices scaling up.
• Cross-Device Hand-Off: Viewers can bookmark a long-form Feature they discovered via a short Reel on their phone and resume playback on their television screen later in the evening.
• Attacking the Connected TV (CTV) Ad Pool: YouTube generated over $30 billion in annual ad revenue largely by commanding the smart TV living room space. By providing full-length horizontal videos formatted for big screens, Meta positions itself to compete for high-value television ad budgets.

Instagram Features vs. Instagram Reels vs. YouTube

Operational Dimension	Instagram ‘Features’ (New Format)	Standard Instagram Reels	YouTube (Core Platform)
Orientation & Aspect Ratio	Horizontal / Widescreen (16:9)	Vertical Full-Screen (9:16)	Horizontal (16:9) Primary
Maximum Video Duration	Up to 90 Minutes	20 Minutes (Technical Cap)	Up to 12 Hours (Verified)
Algorithmic Sweet Spot	Full completion & watch-time	7 – 30 seconds	Variable (8 – 25+ minutes)
Discovery Funnel	Linked Reels (Up to 8 Clips)	Reels Feed & Explore Tab	Homepage, Search & Shorts
Living Room TV Strategy	Apple TV / Google TV App	Mobile-first	Native Global Smart TV Apps
Primary Video Niches	Podcasts, Vlogs, Mini-Docs	Trends, Humor, Quick Tips	Comprehensive Video Library
Current Rollout Stage	Testing in US & Brazil	Global General Availability	Global General Availability

Creator Considerations & Strategic Outlook

While the introduction of Features gives creators a new outlet, it introduces operational trade-offs:

1. The Production Divide: Producing a polished 90-minute widescreen video requires multi-camera workflows, dedicated audio setups, and long editing cycles. Creators accustomed to shooting handheld 15-second phone clips will need to adapt their production pipelines.
2. Monetization Questions: Meta has not yet finalized how mid-roll ad insertions, brand sponsorships, or revenue-sharing splits will function on Features compared to YouTube’s established 55/45 AdSense model.
3. Availability Roadmap: As of late October 2026, upload capabilities remain limited to authorized test accounts across the U.S. and Brazil. Creators in India and other international markets will begin seeing linked widescreen content in their feeds before broader publishing tools roll out globally.

By linking quick-hit Reels directly to 90-minute horizontal videos, Instagram Features attempts to solve the platform’s historical retention problem-giving users a reason to stay on Instagram when they are ready for sit-down entertainment.

Via