Analysis of more than 100,000 global accounts has revealed how Instagram could be costing its users more than they realise.
Over the past 12 months, experts at enterprise security and data management firm Wandera, discovered that since the introduction of Instagram Stories in August last year, users consume an average of 71.5 per cent more data than before the feature launched.
When Instagram first launched Stories, analysis of the 100,000 devices linked to Wandera's enterprise network, showed data usage was 41 per cent higher in the month following launch, than the month before.
When stickers were introduced just before Christmas, data usage was up 23 per cent month-on-month, but this dropped back down after just two weeks. And when Live Instagram Stories, the second update to Stories, hit at the end of January, this feature contributed to a 28 per cent rise in data usage – an increase that Wandera says shows no sign of slowing down.
Instagram Stories lets users create visual diaries over a 24-hour period. Once the 24th hour ticks over, the Story self-destructs. When someone uploads a photo, video, Boomerang or Hyperlapse, Instagram Stories can annotate the screen with text, emoji or freestyle drawing.
Clicking on the friend’s picture and swiping right and left lets users browse their posts. They can then send them a direct message to comment on a particular post.
The rise in data usage is attributed to the increase of video being shared on Instagram, and in particular Instagram Stories. Most savvy users know that playing videos over a 3G or 4G connection can rinse through data, but they may not be aware that the short clips on Instagram Stories use a similar amount of data when combined. Plus, if you're watching multiple shorter clips, you may not realise exactly how much video is being consumed over your mobile network.
The research additionally found that Instagram eats up data quickly. Daily data usage in 2017 on the app averages around 28.4MB per user, a rise of 74 per cent on 2016, when data consumption was just 16.2MB. Read more: You can now save your Live Instagram videos
This is, of course, not Instagram's fault and the onus is on the user to be aware of how much data they're using to avoid being left with high bills. When asked, Instagram said it doesn't comment on third-party research. The study also makes a direct correlation between the launch of Instagram Stories and increased use, but other unknown factors may have played a role.
To avoid using high amounts of data, Wandera advises that people reserve watching Instagram Stories until they're on a Wi-Fi network. Alternatively, you can disable autoplay videos on Instagram in your feed and reduce data usage by going to your profile, clicking the Settings menu option, scrolling down to Mobile Data Use and enabling 'Use Less Data.' This will save data, but may mean photos and videos take longer to load.
“We weren’t surprised to see Instagram is consuming more data than ever with the addition of these new data-rich video features," said Joel Windels, VP of marketing at Wandera. "Unfortunately for businesses, the personal mobile activity of their end users usually gets lumped in with the corporate bill. Evidently, video newsfeed is only growing in popularity so it’s more important than ever to implement the right policy-based controls over employee mobile usage to maximise productivity and minimise bill shock.”
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
