Instagram Reels launch reshapes short‑form video landscape

Instagram Reels was first tested in Brazil in November 2019, then rapidly rolled out in India in June 2020 after TikTok was banned there, and finally launched globally on 5 August 2020 across more than 50 countries. The rollout shifted Instagram’s algorithm toward video, making Reels the primary content format; by 2023 more than half of time spent on Instagram was watching Reels.

Short‑form video now dominates social‑media usage worldwide, accounting for 58 % of all time spent on platforms and generating a 52 % engagement rate. Marketers rank it as the top format for return on investment (49 %). In the United States, digital video advertising spend is projected to exceed $80 billion in 2026, growing faster than the overall ad market. The ecosystem includes Instagram Reels, TikTok, YouTube Shorts and Facebook Reels, together representing the majority of short‑form video consumption.