The popular messaging app Telegram has rolled out its new Stories feature, but it's only available to Premium users for now.
The announcement was made today through a tweet by the company. Last month, Telegram CEO Pavel Durov teased the upcoming feature, promising more control and privacy options than similar features on other social media platforms.
An illustration picture taken through a magnifying glass on April 17, 2018 in Moscow shows the icon of the popular messaging app Telegram on a smart phone screen. - Russia's communications watchdog began today blocking access to the popular messaging app Telegram after a court banned the service for refusing to give the security services access to private conversations.
Telegram's New Feature: Stories
Telegram's Stories feature resembles the one found on Facebook's Messenger app. These stories appear as expandable bubbles at the top of the user's conversation list, making them easily accessible without taking up valuable screen space.
What sets Telegram's Stories apart is the level of control it offers to users regarding audience visibility. According to the statement released by Durov on June 27, Telegram users will have the freedom to decide who can view their stories with precision. The options include making them visible to everyone, only selected contacts, or a list of "close friends."
Additionally, users can choose to add captions and links to provide more context to their stories and even tag other people. This enhanced flexibility ensures that users have full control over their content and who gets to see it.
Another noteworthy feature is the dual-camera support, which lets users simultaneously share photos and videos taken by both the front and rear cameras. This feature builds on the success of Telegram's Video Messages, adding more creativity and versatility to the Stories feature.
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Duration of Telegram Stories
Telegram also allows users to decide the duration of their stories, with options ranging from 6, 12, 24, or 48 hours, or they can choose to have stories permanently displayed on their profile page. This level of customization ensures that users can tailor their stories to suit their preferences.
With the ability to save stories to their profile page, Telegram users can make their profiles more informative and colorful. This allows users to explore more content from their closest contacts and provides valuable insights into the users they connect with in groups or channel comments.
The addition of Stories to Telegram's repertoire is expected to benefit channels as well, as it will enable reposting messages from channels to stories. This means that content has the potential to go viral on the platform, expanding exposure and attracting more subscribers to Telegram channels.
Despite initial skepticism within Telegram's team about the introduction of Stories, the feature has won them over during internal tests. Now, they cannot imagine Telegram without it, emphasizing its value and potential to enhance user engagement and creativity, according to Durov.
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