Facebook notifications show up on Instagram to dismay of users
Users are not happy with the new feature
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.An Instagram update that notifies users of their Facebook notifications is not going down well with fans of the picture-sharing platform.
The recent update, which only some Instagram users have reported seeing, added a small Facebook icon on the profile page.
The update was first noticed by a Reddit user, who uploaded a photo of the Facebook icon and described it as a “pre-release beta of Instagram.”
However, others are now seeing the update, which appears only to function as a way to inform users of their Facebook notifications, pop up on their own Instagram profiles.
Tapping the icon launches the Facebook app. When you click the icon for the first time, if your Instagram account and Facebook account are not linked, a prompt appears that reads: “Instagram wants to open Facebook.”
According to Mashable, the feature is being tested out by Instagram, which was confirmed by a spokesperson for Instagram. However, the spokesperson did not say when or if the feature would be available to all users.
For the users that have found the notification icon on their Instagram, the reminder that Facebook owns Instagram has been largely unwelcome.
On Twitter, people are calling the change “annoying.”
One person asked: “Who told Facebook and Instagram they can integrate our notifications with one another? Like we needed another reason to flock to Twitter...”
Another person sarcastically said: “Fascinating that I deleted my Facebook account months ago, yet Instagram still sends me notifications about my Facebook friends’ activity.”
However, others have found a use for the new feature - which may not have been Facebook’s goal.
“At first I was annoyed that Facebook has added their notifications to my Instagram account, but now it means I don’t have to check Facebook at all unless I get a notification on Instagram! I don’t think that was their plan…” one user pointed out.
The feature appears to be a way to encourage Instagram users to also use Facebook, which has seen a drop in use among young people in recent years.
According to research from eMarketer, less than half of US Internet users aged 12 to 17 will use Facebook this year.
The research firm also predicts Facebook will lose two million users under 25-years-old this year.
The Independent has contacted Instagram for comment.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments