Instagram and Facebook Messenger get merged.
Instagram is currently one of the most popular social networking platforms and it is being used globally. The social media giant is owned by Facebook and so is WhatsApp. Facebook is trying to merge all the social media platforms together in order to offer cross-platform services. With the latest update, the company is merging Instagram direct messages (DM) with the Messenger app for users in India starting today.
With the help of this new feature, the Instagram users will be able to send messages to contacts on Facebook Messenger without needing to leave the Instagram app. The update is now available on both Android and iOS versions of the app.
On Android, the Instagram users will need to update the app to version 164.0.0.46.123 using the Google Play Store. iPhone users, on the other hand, will need version 165.0, which can be downloaded via the Apple App Store. Similarly, the Facebook Messenger app also needs to be updated in order to allow users to send messages to Instagram contacts. The users will need version 287.1 and version 287.0.022.120 on iOS and Android, respectively.
Instagram has been getting quite a few changes and these changes just help Facebook to make the UI of the app look similar to Facebook and Messenger apps. On the latest update, Instagram's DMs get change in colour of the chatbox, react with emojis, create selfie stickers, and other Messenger features. Facebook now also allows users to let the Messenger app take up the display picture and name from Instagram when setting up for the first time.
In order to start using the feature on your smartphone, you will need to opt for the cross-messaging feature. Once enabled, the DM icon at the top right corner of Instagram will be replaced with the Messenger icon.
