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Tag: reels

  • Zee Entertainment Sues Nykaa for Alleged Copyright Breaches in Instagram Reels, Seeks $210k in Damages

    Zee Entertainment Sues Nykaa for Alleged Copyright Breaches in Instagram Reels, Seeks $210k in Damages

    Zee Entertainment, a major Indian media conglomerate, has taken legal action against Nykaa, a prominent fashion and beauty retailer. The lawsuit accuses Nykaa of utilising Zee’s copyrighted music in Instagram reels as a marketing strategy for their products, a move that allegedly infringes on Zee’s licensing agreement with Meta Platforms. Zee Entertainment is seeking damages of US$210,000 for this alleged copyright violation.

    The Case Background

    The suit, filed in the Delhi High Court on April 3, contends that Zee’s licensing deal with Meta Platforms permits individuals to incorporate Zee’s music into their Instagram posts for non-commercial purposes. However, Zee alleges that Nykaa exploited several of its copyrighted songs in Instagram reels to promote products to its vast follower base.

    According to the lawsuit, Zee identified 12 specific Instagram reels where Nykaa purportedly used Zee’s licensed music in its product promotional posts. The court documents, while not publicly available, reportedly include screenshots from these reels as evidence of the alleged copyright infringement.

    During an initial hearing, Nykaa’s legal team informed the court that the 12 disputed links had been removed. The lawsuit documents, which amount to more than 900 pages, assert that Nykaa utilised Zee’s music “without obtaining any permissions/authorisations.”

    Zee is requesting the court to grant INR 20 million (approximately US$209,742) in damages to compensate for Nykaa’s alleged illicit use of its music.

    The Potential Impact

    Both Zee and Nykaa are major publicly traded entities in India’s entertainment and retail sectors, respectively. Legal observers suggest that the resolution of this case could potentially have broader repercussions.

    Aditya Gupta, a partner at Ira Law, pointed out that marketing departments frequently access content from music libraries without fully understanding the specific terms and conditions laid out by platforms like Instagram. He suggested that this case could offer much-needed clarity on the issue.

    Questions & Answers

    What is the basis of Zee Entertainment’s lawsuit against Nykaa?
    Zee Entertainment alleges that Nykaa used its copyrighted music in Instagram reels as a marketing strategy for their products, in violation of Zee’s licensing agreement with Meta Platforms.

    What is the requested compensation in the lawsuit?
    Zee Entertainment is seeking damages of US$210,000 against Nykaa for the alleged copyright infringement.

    What implications could this lawsuit have?
    Since Zee Entertainment and Nykaa are significant players in their respective sectors, the resolution of this case could set a precedent and offer clarity regarding the use of copyrighted music in social media advertising.

  • Nykaa Faces $210K Lawsuit for Alleged Copyright Violation on Instagram Reels

    Nykaa Faces $210K Lawsuit for Alleged Copyright Violation on Instagram Reels

    Zee Entertainment, an entertainment company based in India, has initiated a lawsuit against Nykaa, a fashion and beauty retailer. The entertainment company has accused Nykaa of using its copyrighted songs in promotional reels on Instagram, without the necessary permissions. As a result, Zee Entertainment is seeking $210,000 in damages.

    Zee’s Licensing Agreement with Meta Platforms

    According to the lawsuit filed with the Delhi High Court on April 3, Zee Entertainment holds a licensing agreement with Meta Platforms. This agreement permits individuals to use Zee’s music for non-commercial purposes in their Instagram posts. However, Zee alleges that Nykaa has violated this agreement by using various copyrighted songs to advertise products to its millions of followers on Instagram.

    The lawsuit in question is not available to the public. Both Nykaa and Zee Entertainment have refrained from commenting on the issue.

    Social media platforms such as Instagram, a Meta product, have seen a surge in their use for advertising purposes. Brands now frequently employ short-video formats, often accompanied by popular music, to promote their goods.

    Removal of Flagged Links

    The lawsuit filed by Zee Entertainment cites 12 specific Instagram posts where Nykaa allegedly used Zee’s licensed music unlawfully. Following a brief hearing on Thursday, Nykaa’s legal representative informed the court that the 12 flagged links had been removed.

    Zee’s lawsuit, which spans over 900 pages, asserts that Nykaa utilized the music “without procuring any permissions or authorizations” from the entertainment company. The lawsuit advances a claim for 20 million rupees (approximately $209,742) as compensation for Nykaa’s illicit use of Zee’s music.

    The legal dispute between these two major companies could potentially have broader consequences. Aditya Gupta, a partner at Ira Law in India, suggests that “Marketing departments often use content available on music libraries without reading the fine print of the Instagram terms” and that the court’s decision could “provide much-needed clarity.”

    Questions & Answers

    What is the basis of Zee Entertainment’s lawsuit against Nykaa?
    Zee Entertainment alleges that Nykaa has used its copyrighted music in promotional Instagram reels without the necessary permissions, thereby violating Zee’s licensing agreement with Meta Platforms.

    What action has Nykaa taken in response to the lawsuit?
    Nykaa has removed the 12 specific Instagram posts flagged in Zee’s lawsuit, as reported by their legal representative in court.

    What are the potential implications of this case?
    The case could have wider consequences, potentially affecting the way marketing departments utilize content from music libraries. The decision could also provide clarity regarding the use of such content under Instagram’s terms.

  • Take Control of Your Feed: Instagram Empowers Users with AI-Powered Reels Algorithm Customization

    Take Control of Your Feed: Instagram Empowers Users with AI-Powered Reels Algorithm Customization

    The days when Instagram was simply a platform for checking in on friends and family are long gone. Nowadays, user feeds are filled with content that is supposed to align with their interests, however, this is not always the case. Meta, the parent company of Instagram, is aware of this and is providing Instagram users with a solution to optimize their algorithms.

    Controlling the Instagram Reels Algorithm

    Instagram has come out with a new feature that allows users to have a greater control over the type of videos that appear on their Reels feed. Named “Your Algorithm”, this feature provides users with details about the topics Instagram assumes they are interested in based on their past activity.

    The “Your Algorithm” settings can be adjusted by users to either add new topics or remove existing ones. This assists the app in determining the users’ actual video preferences. Instagram has stated that this feature is AI-based, although they have not provided further details about this functionality.

    Using this AI-powered feature, users now have the ability to view, personalize, and shape the topics that form their Reels, thus making the recommendations feel even more customized.

    More Customization Features on the Way

    According to Meta, these customizations are only the initial phase for Instagram. The company has future plans to introduce adjustable algorithms for the Explore tab and other parts of the app. Meta has also recently launched a feature on Threads, another of its platforms, that permits users to adjust the algorithm by tagging their posts with “dear algo”.

    Currently, “Your Algorithm” is available in the US and Meta has stated that it will soon be available worldwide in English. To utilize this feature, users need to:

    – Open a Reel video
    – Click on the icon with two lines and hearts at the top-right corner

    From there, users can view a summary of recommended topics and input the topics they want to see more or less of. They also have the option to share their list of interests via a story.

    While the new customization feature is a welcome addition, some users may desire even more control over their Instagram. For instance, after tailoring their Reels feed, some might prefer to remove them from their main feed and restrict them to the Reels submenu. Reshuffling features such as Direct Messages back to their original place before Instagram’s recent redesign is another potential request. While it may be a tall order, it’s certainly food for thought for the developers at Meta.

    Questions & Answers

    What is the new feature Instagram is rolling out?
    Instagram is launching a feature named “Your Algorithm” that allows users to fine-tune the type of videos that appear in their Reels feed.

    How does “Your Algorithm” work?
    “Your Algorithm” provides users with details about the topics Instagram assumes they are interested in based on their past activity. Users can then add new topics or remove existing ones to enhance their personalization.

    When and where will “Your Algorithm” be available?
    “Your Algorithm” is currently available in the US and will soon be available globally in English.

  • Instagram enables download of public Reels in the US

    Instagram enables download of public Reels in the US

    Instagram introduced Reels in 2020, and since then, this feature’s popularity has grown, reaching over 2.35 billion monthly active users. Now, Instagram is rolling out a new feature for its users in the US.

    Adam Mosseri, CEO of Instagram, announced on his broadcast channel that the company will allow users to download Reels to their camera roll. The process is simple: just tap the share button and select the download option.

    It’s important to note that only Reels from public accounts can be downloaded, and even if you have a public account, you can choose to turn off the Reel download option.

    Mosseri did not mention whether the downloaded Reels would have watermarks, but based on the picture he uploaded, it is safe to assume that downloaded Reels will indeed bear watermarks, much like they do right now.

    Currently, every Instagram user can download and share their own Reels on different platforms. However, with this new feature, users will also be able to share other people’s Reels on platforms like TikTok, for example.

    TikTok has had this feature for years, and videos with the TikTok logo are now prevalent on various social platforms, contributing to the Chinese video-sharing app’s increasing popularity.

    It’s worth noting that although videos with TikTok’s logo are no longer promoted by Instagram’s algorithms, their number on the platform remains substantial. With this new update, there is a chance for Instagram’s logo to appear frequently on its rival platforms as well.

    While it is likely that this feature will eventually be available for users worldwide, the exact timeline for its global release remains unknown. We will have to wait and see when that happens.

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  • Instagram now lets you pin posts and Reels to your profile

    Instagram now lets you pin posts and Reels to your profile

    On Twitter and TikTok, you have this cool feature to ‘pin’ certain posts on your profile. The pinned items will stay on top of your posts, and whenever a user visits your profile, these will be the first items they see. So, you get to present your profile with the exact highlights you want people to notice. And now, this cool feature just came to Instagram as well.

    As Instagram announced, it’s rolling out a “pin” option, which will enable you to pin up to three posts or Reels on your profile. The pinned objects will appear at the top of your profile grid and will remain over the rest of your posts.

    But how to pin a post or a Reel to your Instagram profile? Well, to do that, simply choose what you want to pin and tap on the three dots located at the top-right corner of the publication. After that, tap on “Pin to your profile.”

    Now, if you return to your profile, you will see the post at the top-left corner of your grid with a white pin on it. Keep in mind that if you pin more posts, the already pinned ones will be shifted to the right, so the order of attachment matters.

    However, Instagram introducing such a feature doesn’t come as a surprise. We already knew that such an option was coming.

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  • Facebook introduces a new way for you to create Reels

    Facebook introduces a new way for you to create Reels

    In another attempt to rival TikTok, Facebook now offers a new feature called “Sharing to Reels.” Sharing to Reels will allow creators to post directly to Facebook Reels from a third-party app.

    From now on, third-party app developers will be able to integrate “Sharing to Reels” directly into their apps, enabling users to post their Reels directly on Facebook via a “Reels” button.

    If you need to spice your Reels up before posting to Facebook, you will have access to Reels’ editing tools. So, in other words, you will be able to create Reels, modify them with some cool effects and stickers, and then post them directly to Facebook Reels.

    According to the tech giant, if you want to submit a short video to Facebook from another app, “Sharing to Reels” will eliminate the need to download the video first. Currently, Smule, a popular karaoke app, and the video editing apps VivaVideo and Vita have this new feature.

    “We’re focused on making Reels the best way for creators to get discovered, connect with their audience and earn money. We also want to make it fun and easy for people to find and share relevant and entertaining content,” reads part of the official announcement.

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  • Facebook is trying to replace TikTok with new Reels

    Facebook is trying to replace TikTok with new Reels

    When Meta accused Apple of costing the company ten billion dollars a few weeks back, Facebook had also shared some of its growth plans for the coming future. Part of its ten billion-dollar restructuring strategy, Zuckerberg stated, included initiating a “transition on our own services towards short-form video like Reels.”
    This also includes a global launch of Facebook’s own version of Reels, as Meta observed TikTok’s viral success and shifts its focus on promoting similar content. Facebook had recently been trialing “Facebook Reels” with multiple users on the platform, as well as promoting cross-platform video sharing to garner wider interest in this type of content and test the waters. Starting today, Reels is officially becoming its own standalone feature on Facebook, and is rolling out to at least 150 countries over the coming weeks.
    Zuckerberg made the announcement in a Facebook post earlier today: “Reels is already our fastest-growing content format by far, and today we’re making it available to everyone on Facebook globally. We want Facebook Reels to be the best place for creators to connect with their community and make a living, so we’re launching new monetization tools, too.”
    The Reels will begin appearing for everyone right at the top of Facebook users’ Feed. Facebook Stories—another feature stolen off Instagram—will be able to be converted into Reels, and vice versa: Reels will be able to be shared as part of Stories.
    Facebook Reels are also set to become a promoted category on Facebook Watch as well as, surprisingly, Facebook Groups. Users will additionally be shown individually recommended Reels, which the company caters to according to people’s personal taste. In short, Facebook will push the new Facebook Reels to feature quite literally everywhere across the platform.
    To create a financial incentive for bigger creators to focus on Reels, Facebook is also paying up to $35,000 per month to select creators to pump out more Reels content. That particular bonus program has been around ever since Facebook began seriously testing Reels, and is part of the company’s billion-dollar creative investment pledge it made back in July 2021.
  • On Instagram, you can now send and receive private Story likes without piling up unnecessary DMs

    On Instagram, you can now send and receive private Story likes without piling up unnecessary DMs

    Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, announced on Twitter that Instagram is introducing a new feature called “Private Story Likes,” which allows Instagram users to like a Story without the platform sending a direct message to the Story’s author.

    Before the Private Story Likes feature, to respond to a Story you could only send a direct message or an emoji reaction to the creator of the Story and when you reacted to someone’s Story, they always received a response in their DM inbox.

    Users who have the Private Story Likes feature may now notice a new heart icon located between the Send Message field and the paper airplane sharing button when watching someone’s Story.

    Also, the likes you receive or give on stories will be private and won’t have public counts, which means that only you will be able to see who liked your Story. If you want to see who liked your Story, you need to go to the viewer sheet of that particular Story, and there you will see a heart icon next to every viewer who liked your Story.

    According to Adam Mosseri, Instagram’s idea for the Private Story Likes feature is for ‘people to express more support to each other’ and also to ‘clean up DMs a little bit.’ Adam Mosseri explained that Instagram’s goal is to make DMs more focused on conversations between you and your friends.

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  • Longer Instagram Reels could soon be a thing

    Longer Instagram Reels could soon be a thing

    According to a new leak, Instagram could be working on allowing users to create longer Reels than is currently possible. Alessandro Paluzzi, a popular tipster and reverse engineer on Twitter who has released many a juicy preview of upcoming app updates, has discovered that the Meta-owned platform is preparing to introduce a 90-second limit on Instagram Reels, to replace the current 60-second cap on publications.

    While it’s not a guarantee, Paluzzi has been right many times before, and using his skills as a mobile developer to reverse-engineering the Instagram app allows him to see strings of code from upcoming updates that are invisible to the rest of us.

    Instagram Reels, giving users the ability to create short-form video clips, launched back in 2020. It was modeled after TikTok, which was already exponentially growing in popularity just for this reason. After Instagram Reels took off immediately, YouTube decided to copy the platform and create its own version of TikTok, which it called YouTube Shorts.

    Although Shorts are still a beta feature on YouTube, they have already become massively popular with the top creators, who are using them to capture viewers’ attention on upcoming videos, advertise their merch, make announcements, or post quick updates on how their lives are going.

    And now, Instagram seems to be paving the way for another possible change to short-form video style by raising the upper limit to video length, which is still at 60 seconds for YouTube Shorts.

    While some people are getting excited at the prospect of adding even more material to their Reels, other have expressed concern that this won’t help users succeed on the platform, because people’s attention spans are only getting shorter—not longer.

    Remember, from back in the day when YouTube became popular, the algorithms have been favoring increasingly shorter and shorter videos. TikTok’s most popular posts are under a minute long, as are the relatively new YouTube Shorts. Do you think 90-second Reels will take off, or nah? Do let us know in the comments!

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  • Instagram testing TikTok-like vertical scrolling for Stories

    Instagram testing TikTok-like vertical scrolling for Stories

    Instagram is working on ways it can better rival the crazy popular short-video-sharing platform TikTok, and a redesigned way to show Stories is one of them. The company announced such a feature will be coming back last year, but now, it has finally started appearing to some users for testing.

    The feature was first spotted by social media consultant Matt Navara, and it seems Instagram is currently testing for some users located in Turkey. The update brings vertical scrolling to Stories, and in order to jump to the next user’s Stories, you need to swipe down, just as on TikTok. To view Stories from the same user, you still need to tap the left or right side of the screen.

    Additionally, the update was also received in Brazil, thus making us think that the tested feature has a more global rollout, or it has been expanding to more countries.

    The new feature immediately reminds us of TikTok, and it could as well be interpreted as an attempt by Instagram to better compete with the app with steadily growing popularity. What’s more, Instagram has also been making Stories more focused on video instead of just a simple photo.

    At the moment, it is unclear when this feature will be available to all users, as it is currently in its testing period.

    The feature we reported on above is not the only attempt that Instagram has recently made to better rival video-sharing TikTok.Back in December, Instagram also tested an increased maximum duration limit for videos in Stories. When posting videos in Stories, if they are longer than 15 seconds, they would get segmented into different Stories, and Instagram is currently working on amending this. It has been testing allowing up to 60 seconds of videos in Stories without segmentation.

    And let’s not forget to mention Reels: it is the more obvious TikTok-like feature on the social media platform. Instagram has been pushing for it to gain traction and popularity and is even offering a bonus of up to $10,000 for content creators that post Instagram Reels.

    Reels actually debuted back in 2020, but it hasn’t been gaining as much attention as the rival TikTok, which continues to rank quite high across all metrics of popularity. Recently, TikTok was even crowned as the “most visited website of 2021”, at least in a Cloudflare domain ranking. By the way, TikTok surpassed Google.com in this ranking!

    Nevertheless, that doesn’t stop Instagram-owner Meta to continue developing its services and enriching the user experience with new features. One particularly good feature that Instagram has recently announced and is planning to implement soon is a version of the chronological feed that vanished in 2016. Basically, Instagram will have three different options for your main feed: one dubbed Home (which will be the current one), one dubbed “Favorites”, and one dubbed “Following”. The latter will allow people to scroll through the posts of only the creators they have followed and view them in chronological order.

    For many people that would be quite handy as many users don’t like getting post recommendations from people that they don’t follow in their feed instead of the content of people they like and want to see more of.

    Another recent feature that Instagram is working on is called “Edit Grid”, and it will allow you to arrange the posts in your profile to your liking, regardless of the date the photo was published.

    Of course, all these features are currently in testing or under development and an official global release date has not been specified.

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  • Instagram could pay you to use its Reels app

    Instagram could pay you to use its Reels app

    Last fall, Instagram announced the launch of its short-form video platform called Reels—TikTok’s unofficial rival. The app allows you to easily record and edit 15-second multi-clip videos with audio, special effects, and plenty of creative tools. By allowing public accounts to share “reels” to the wider Instagram community through a new Explore space, Instagram has seen some significant growth in its diversity and creativity lately.

    Now, it seems Reels is about to go all out in an effort to catch up with (or beat out) TikTok, as it is about to implement a new strategy for expanding its user base.

    Alessandro Paluzzi, an avid Android and iOS developer, was digging around in some back-end code when he stumbled upon a never-before-seen announcement screen. This screen reveals that Instagram is planning to begin offering monetary bonuses to Reels users to get more people excited about the platform.

    In order to participate in the mysterious bonus program, Instagram users will reportedly be asked to share their favorite Reels and spread the word. They’d most likely have to hit certain milestones before they can cash their earnings, but any further criteria have been undisclosed as of yet.

    Instagram’s cash payout game plan is by no means a novel strategy in the social media app business, and Reels is far from the first to implement it. Late last year, Snapchat began offering $1M per day in rewards for the most entertaining clips shared on the platform. And they were quite successful.

    Then just this month, YouTube announced its “Shorts Fund,” a prize pool of $100M distributed to YouTube Shorts creators over the course of 2021-2022.

    Instagram has kept mum about Paluzzi’s discovery so far, but they’ll be sure to announce their plan for the secretive “bonus program” when they are closer to the launch date and ready to let the world know.

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  • Instagram launches Reels, competition for TikTok

    Instagram launches Reels, competition for TikTok

    Short-form video app TikTok has 41 days to complete a deal with Microsoft or any other U.S. company or else President Donald Trump has said that he will ban the app in the U.S. That’s because TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, is based in China and a law in the country allows the communist government to order tech firms to collect intelligence from consumers and companies in the states and send it to Beijing. This is the same reason why outfits like Huawei and ZTE are considered national security threats in the states.

    NPR reported that twenty separate lawsuits accusing TikTok of capturing information about users’ facial characteristics, locations, and close contacts were merged into one class-action suit. The plaintiffs are minors who use the app and the suit states that the personal data collected by TikTok is sent to servers in China. ByteDance says that the servers it uses for TikTok are located in the U.S. with backups in Singapore. Experts for the plaintiffs said in the filing that personal data collected by TikTok is “under the control of third-parties who cooperate with the Chinese government. Such information reveals TikTok users’ precise physical location, including possibly indoor locations within buildings, and TikTok users’ apps that possibly reveal mental or physical health, religious views, political views, and sexual orientation.”

    With talk of a possible ban, many of the 100 million TikTok users in the U.S. have been looking for a new app to record their lip-syncing, dancing, singing, comedy bits, and protests. One app called Clash launched months early so that it could sign up TikTok members worried about losing the app to a ban. Instagram announced the launch of its short-form video feature called Reels. Instagram says, “Reels invites you to create fun videos to share with your friends or anyone on Instagram. Record and edit 15-second multi-clip videos with audio, effects, and new creative tools. You can share reels with your followers on Feed, and, if you have a public account, make them available to the wider Instagram community through a new space in Explore. Reels in Explore offers anyone the chance to become a creator on Instagram and reach new audiences on a global stage.”

    To use Reels, open Instagram and touch the camera icon in the upper left of the screen. On the bottom of the page, tap the Reels tab to get started. On the left side of the screen, you’ll see icons for Audio, Speed, Effects, and Timer. With the Audio setting, you can search for a song from Instagram’s music library or use your own by creating a reel with original music. If you share an original song on Reels, you will get credit for it. And your musical creation can be used by others by selecting “Use Audio” from your Reel.

    With AR Effects you can pick one from Instagram’s effect gallery which also includes effects made by creators all over the planet. This will allow you to create multiple-clips with different effects. If you are recording a Reel, you can record it hands-free by tapping on Timer and Countdown. A 3-2-1 countdown will alert you when your device has started recording.

    Perhaps one of the most important features on Reels is Align. This allows you to line up objects from your previous clips to help you record seamless transitions for outfit changes and more. And Speed lets you speed up audio and video. Reels can be recorded one at a time or all at once. Instagram says, “Record the first clip by pressing and holding the capture button. You’ll see a progress indicator at the top of the screen as you record. Stop recording to end each clip.”

    If you have a public account, your Reel can be shared in Explore or over your feed. If you use a private account, only your followers will be able to view your content from your feed. Original audio can’t be shared with this setting and others cannot share your Reels with others who don’t follow you. And a Reel can also be shared like a Story which means that it will disappear after 24 hours.

    “Reels in Explore showcases the best of trending culture on Instagram. Discover an entertaining selection of reels made by anyone on Instagram, in a vertical feed customized for you. If you love a Reel, you can easily like, comment or share it with your friends. You’ll also see some Reels with a “Featured” label. If your Reel is featured in Explore, you’ll receive a notification. Featured Reels are a selection of public Reels chosen by Instagram to help you discover original content we hope will entertain and inspire you.

    Reels gives people new ways to express themselves, discover more of what they love on Instagram, and help anyone with the ambition of becoming a creator take center stage.”

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