Instagram tests buy button
Instagram wants to earn money from online commerce and is therefore testing a new function in the USA.
The Facebook subsidiary announced it will begin small-scale testing next week in the U.S. of a feature that will make it "easier" for users to buy products they spot on Instagram images. Initially, according to Tuesday (local time), photos of certain brands will display an icon that can be used to pop up more information about the products pictured.
A buy button is designed to redirect customers to the retailer's website. Smartphones and tablets have changed "the way people store," Instagram wrote in a blog post. The photo and video service wants to enable its users to learn more about pictured products without having to leave the application, it said.
In the long term, a purchase function is to be available worldwide. Purchase functions in social networks are not new. They bring merchants and buyers together - the platforms themselves earn money from the sales. (SDA)
