Instagram Tests 90-Minute Videos and Lands on Apple TV — Without Paying Creators

Instagram is testing videos of up to 90 minutes in length and launched on Apple TV in the U.S. on October 26, according to an announcement the platform made Monday in a video posted on its own service. The tests position Instagram more directly against YouTube — but Instagram confirmed it still has no long-term plan to pay creators through an ad-revenue share comparable to YouTube's.

An Instagram representative said the platform is funding longer-form content "directly with some creators right now to support them," while conceding that "it's too early to share a long-term monetization model." That gap is the story: the distribution is expanding; the money is not.

Why the sudden turn toward long-form?

Instagram VP of product Tessa Lyons, appearing alongside Instagram head Adam Mosseri in the announcement video, framed the shift as creative necessity. "Instagram is all about connecting people over creativity. And creativity is so much more than just short-form video or posting carousels," Lyons said. She cited creators telling stories through episodic series and sharing clips from long videos to drive discovery.

Mosseri admitted he had resisted the change. "I have been against doing long-form video on the platform for a long time," he said, citing a core concern: "how do we make sure that we keep Instagram not just about entertainment, but also about connecting with friends." His worry was concrete. "If you watch a video [on Instagram] for 10 or 20 or 30 minutes, it's a lot of Reels, photos and carousels that you might not have sent to a friend" — which means fewer likes and shares. He has now been persuaded, he indicated, that Instagram must "lean into" long-form video, including on televisions.

What exactly is launching?

The U.S. tests, limited to a small group of creators, cover several features:

• Features: longer horizontal videos for podcasts, vlogs, interviews and episodes, with length limits under test including up to 90 minutes. Previously tested with creators in Brazil; now expanding to the U.S.
• Clips as Reels: up to 8 clips can point to a single long video; also moving from Brazil to a small U.S. test.
• Series: a dedicated home for episodic Reels on a creator's profile, tested since spring 2026 with select creators in the U.S., India and Mexico, expanding to more countries through the end of 2026.
• Instagram for TV: already available on Samsung, Fire TV and Google TV in the U.S., now on Apple TV; livestream support is coming "soon."
• Phone as a remote: users will control TV playback from their phones, see what friends are watching in a Friends tab, and save content on mobile to watch later on TV. Coming soon.
• Live: launched as a format in 2016, with discoverability and monetization improvements tested in Indonesia and Brazil and a wider rollout planned.

"Creators can build a fuller body of work on Instagram, while fans have more ways to discover and keep up with what they love," an Instagram rep said.

What does this change for creators?

For now, very little in financial terms. On future revenue sharing, the spokesperson would only say: "we're exploring ways for creators to earn from brands, fans and Instagram, including performance-based incentives. Over time, we think there will be compounding benefits for creators to tell new stories, reach new audiences, and find new partners, which should lead to many monetization opportunities." Every promise in that sentence is conditional — "exploring," "over time," "should lead to." Creators weighing a move from YouTube will find no guaranteed payout structure here, only tests and assurances that monetization may follow. Whether Instagram converts its new reach into creator income will decide if this is a real YouTube rival or a land grab on borrowed labor.