This archive report was first published on 6 August 2020.
On Wednesday, Facebook rolled out its own version of social media rival TikTok in the United States and more than 50 other countries, embedding a new short-form video service called Reels as a feature within its popular Instagram app.
Reels' debut comes days after Microsoft said it was in talks to acquire TikTok's U.S. operations from China's ByteDance, under pressure from the White House, which has threatened to ban it and other Chinese-owned apps over data security concerns.
Facebook has been eager to attract American teenagers, many of whom have flocked to TikTok in the last two years. The launch escalates a bruising fight between Facebook and TikTok, with each casting the other as a threat.
Reels was first tested in Brazil in 2018 and then later in France, Germany, and India, which was TikTok's biggest market until the Indian government banned it last month following a border clash with China.
Similar to TikTok, Reels users can record short mobile-friendly vertical videos, then add special effects and soundtracks pulled from a music library.
TikTok Chief Executive Kevin Mayer called Reels a 'copycat product' that could coast on Instagram's enormous existing user base after 'their other copycat Lasso failed quickly.'
Instagram's vice president of product, Vishal Shah, acknowledged the similarities, saying that 'inspiration for products comes from everywhere,' including Facebook's teams and 'the ecosystem more broadly.'
Instagram is not yet planning to offer advertising or other ways for users to make money through Reels, although it did recruit young online stars like dancer Merrick Hanna and musician Tiagz to test the product ahead of launch.
