Instagram adds India-first ‘Live Rooms’ feature to let users go live with up to 3 guests

PTI, Dec 1, 2020, 2:56 PM IST

New Delhi: Facebook-owned Instagram on Tuesday announced a feature called ‘Live Rooms’ to help creators go ‘Live’ with up to three guests, giving them more opportunities to have conversations with their communities and grow their audiences.

The early tests for this feature were done in India and now, India is one of the first countries to roll it out more broadly, according to a statement.

The roll-out for ‘Live Rooms’ has begun and will be available to everyone in India and Indonesia soon, it added. The statement said Instagram Live views in India grew 60 per cent on a week-on-week basis in March (comparing March 18-24 period with the week of March 11-17).

“Now, with the ability to go Live with up to three guests, creators have more opportunities to have conversations with their communities, and to expand their reach and use cases for Live,” it added. The early test for ‘Live Rooms’ took place with a few creators in India, including @shereenlovebug aka Shereen Bharwani, @mr.mnv aka Manav Chhabra and @rohina aka Rohina Anand Khira.

Ajit Mohan, vice-president and managing director at Facebook India, said creators are at the forefront of pushing culture and creativity on Instagram and the company is constantly innovating to help them express themselves better. “This year in particular has seen extensive use of Live, and as physical distancing norms continue, Live will remain an invaluable feature to bring friends, families and audiences together, and foster meaningful conversations,” he added.

Mohan said that from the launch of Reels to the testing and roll-out of Live Rooms, India is playing a crucial role in the way products are being designed for the future. Instagram noted that while ‘Live Rooms’ will facilitate greater audience engagement, safety continues to be a focus and the existing safety measures will work on Live Rooms as well.