For all you storytellers out there, Telegram is releasing a major feature update in July: Stories. Users will be able to choose how long their story post lives: 6, 12, 24 or 48 hours. There's a permanent option, too.
Pavel Durov, Telegram CEO, admits his initial
reluctance to adding Stories to Telegram has been wiped away by user pressure
after 'years' of requests (via 9TO5Mac). In a lengthy message, Durov announces
that now it would be even easier to go viral on Telegram:
The ability to save your stories to the
profile page will make Telegram profiles more informative and colorful. You
will not only be able to explore more content from your closest contacts, but
finally discover more information about users you connect with in groups or
channel comments. Speaking of channels, they will benefit from more exposure
and subscribers: once we launch the ability to repost messages from channels to
stories, going viral on Telegram will become a lot easier.
There's a user showcase of the new feature:
The 6 key features of Telegram Stories
Durov promotes the update with 6 key points:
Privacy, Compact UI, Flexibility, Captions, Dual Camera Support, Optional
Ephemerality. Let's take a closer look at each.
Privacy: Users are given the flexible freedom
to define their audience with precision. Instagram, for example, allows users
to post stories publicly or only to a Close Friends list. Telegram takes that a
step further by letting you choose between the options "everyone",
"only your contacts (with exceptions)", "a few selected
contacts", or "a list of Close Friends". This makes it super
customizable.
Compact UI: The Telegram team promises not to
intrude. 'Stories will be placed in an expandable section at the top of your
chat list, which makes them easily accessible without taking away valuable
space', points out Durov.
Flexibility: If the story posts by a certain
contact are giving you the blues, you can hide them. Just move them to the
'Hidden' list on the Contacts section.
Captions: Pretty self explanatory. You can
add more context (or links, or tags) by providing captions for your photo/video
Stories.
Dual Camera Support: Interesting feature that
may become popular as "poor man's 360° camera". 'We're adding the
option to post photos and videos taken by the front and the rear cameras
simultaneously', the Telegram CEO promises.
Optional Ephemerality: Pretty useful for
those of you who wish to set your Stories for a timespan different from the
'traditional' 24 hours. 'You'll be able to choose when a story expires - in 6,
12, 24, or 48 hours - or permanently display stories on your profile page, with
individual privacy settings for each', says Durov.
The feature is in its final testing stages
and will be rolled out in early July.
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