Vine copies Instagram and adds private messaging feature

[vc_row][vc_column width=”1/1″][text_output]Today Vine has taken a leaf out of Instagram’s book and has added a private messaging feature into its popular video-looping app. But the big question is: will anyone use it?

A post on the Vine blog today by Jason Toff, the app’s Product Manager, reveals that Vine users can now send each other private messages, as well as videos, to anyone in their address book – even if they’re not using Vine.

If you want to create a Vine message, which the team are abbreviating to VM, like DM, then just select the new “Messages” option in the main menu.

Your VM inbox is then divided up into two sections, Friends (people you know) and Other (people outside of your network). People who don’t want an Other inbox (because you just have to look at Facebook to see how creepy they can be) are able to turn it off in their Settings.

It’s clear from the reactions on Twitter that the slightly older generation who are used to broadcasting thoughts and ideas via tweets and Facebook updates are a little confused by the move – my 27-year-old self included. However, you only have to chart the sky-rocketing popularity of much more secretive apps, like Snapchat and WhatsApp, to realise that the younger generations want to share their selfies with the world as much as they want to talk to their friends without anyone else seeing.[/text_output][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Becca Caddy