Instagram has announced that it had begun to create an update that will remove the “liked by” count from its social media app.
The update became necessary as its administrators stated that the level of pressure experienced by users has consistently been on the increase.
At a Facebook annual software developer conference which held in San Jose, California, Instagram’s lead administrator, Adam Mosseri, revealed why it was more important than ever to have an updated version of the app.
He stated, “we want people to worry a little bit less about how many likes they’re getting on Instagram and spend a bit more time connecting with the people that they care about.”
In the new update, the count of other users who liked a single post would no longer be visible to everyone.
However, account owners would be able to view the number of likes on their posts privately, if they wish to know.
Adam further explained that the only way users would know the number of likes for other people’s posts is if they decide to count manually – a task many would not find palatable.
He continued, “We don’t want Instagram to feel like a competition. What we aspire to do is lead the fight against online bullying.”
This latest move by Instagram is part of its efforts to curb the increasing rate of online bullying. Young Instagram users are said to have been faced with challenges to meet up with their peers, thereby putting them under unnecessary pressure.
Adam equally mentioned that some other updates are currently being considered in order to keep bullying at the barest minimum. He stated that there would soon be a feature that would nudge any user who is about to publish comments that seem aggressive.
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