Instagram Explores Long-Form Content Strategy for CTV Success

Instagram is shifting its focus toward long-form content as it seeks to strengthen its presence on connected TV (CTV) platforms. Tessa Lyons, Instagram’s vice president of product, said at the Scalable Summit that short-form vertical videos alone may not be enough to succeed on television screens.

“We’re thinking about how we best serve the creators who do short-form content, but also do long-form content,” Lyons stated. She added that in two years, Instagram aims to become “a unique part of creators’ long-form strategy in addition to their short-form strategy.”

The platform is now considering support for podcasts, extended live streams, and longer storytelling formats such as mini-dramas. Instagram launched an updated CTV app in December 2025 with a YouTube-style interface. While short-form content remains central for now, the company is clearly preparing for a broader mix of video lengths to boost viewing time and creator opportunities on bigger screens.

This marks a notable change from Instagram’s past experience with long-form content. The company launched the standalone IGTV app in 2018 in an attempt to compete with YouTube, but it failed to gain traction. Instagram shut down IGTV in 2022 to simplify the user experience and focus on short-form video.

YouTube currently dominates CTV streaming in the U.S., outperforming traditional services like Netflix and Disney+. With CTV advertising growing rapidly, Instagram appears interested in capturing a larger share of long-form viewing and the associated ad revenue.