Picture a video marketing editor who, 3 years ago, printed Instagram’s own guidance and taped it to the wall above the editing bay. It said to keep videos under 3 minutes, or no one who didn’t already follow you would see them. So the team cut everything to fit. Interviews, trimmed. Customer stories, trimmed. Anything with a second act, gone.
Then this Monday, the same platform announced it would test videos up to 90 minutes long in the main feed, on your television.
Same company. Same team. Opposite instructions. Nothing about the customer changed.
So what did?
Hi, I’m Jeff Payne. You’re listening to The Jeff Payne Show, Episode 107: The Platform Changed Its Mind. Your Video Shouldn’t Have To.
Here’s a short version of what happened.
In the summer of 2024, Instagram’s head said on the record that long-form video would hurt the product. People who watch a 20-minute video see less from their friends and share less, and that friend connection was the whole identity. So they weren’t going to chase it.
In January 2025, Reels expanded from 90 seconds to 3 minutes.
This week, Instagram announced it is testing a new format. Horizontal video up to 90 minutes, built for podcasts, interviews, and shows. It appears in the main feed and on the Explore page. Creators can cut up to 8 short clips from one long video, and each clip links back to the full video. The whole package is being pushed to the TV app, so you can start on your phone and finish on the couch.
Two reversals in about 2 years. This time, the reason wasn’t about how people behave. It was about where people are. Instagram wants to be where the culture is, and the culture is spending its evenings watching 90-minute videos on a big screen on someone else’s platform.
Now, two things to keep straight. This is a test. A small group of creators in Brazil, then a small group in the United States. If your company has a business account, the ceiling still applies this week. And ninety minutes is one of several lengths they’re testing.
But the direction is unmistakable. The direction is the story.
Here’s the part a CEO should notice.
A platform just told businesses, out loud, exactly what it wants from them. That almost never happens. Usually, you reverse-engineer it from what gets shown and what doesn’t. This time it’s plain: long, finished, horizontal video. The expensive kind. The podcast. The interview. The thing that takes a crew, a day, and an editor.
And in exchange, you get distribution. Inside their app. On their terms, which they’ve changed twice in two years.
What you don’t get is a share of the money. The platform Instagram competes with pays its partners most of the advertising revenue their videos generate. That’s why the long-form world grew up there. Instagram has said its own creator-payout program costs more than it brings in and that a long-term model is too early to discuss.
So read it the way you’d read any offer. Someone wants 90 minutes of your most valuable asset and can reprice it whenever they like, with no revenue attached. That’s not an opportunity. That’s a term sheet.
And the reason it’s worth 90 minutes to them is the reason it should be worth even more to you. Platforms used to compete for the next 30 seconds of your customer’s attention. Now they’re competing for the next 90 minutes, because that’s where the ad inventory lives.
Inventory is just attention someone else gets to sell. Every hour a person spends watching a long video on a living-room screen is an hour one platform sold and another couldn’t.
Your customer’s attention is now the scarcest resource that every platform is bidding on.
That’s why your business should own the item being bid on.
Here’s what I mean. A company can make two types of video, and they can look identical the day they’re posted.
The first kind is built for the feed. It exists to be seen this week. It’s good at that. When the week is over, it’s over. If the platform changes its mind again— and it will — that video goes with it.
The second kind is built to answer a real question your buyer asks, answered by the person in your company who actually knows. That video is an asset no matter where it lives. It can be searched. AI tools can find it before your buyers ever call you. And the clips, the 8 short ones Instagram wants you to cut, stop being the product. They become the advertising for it.
Same crew. Same day. Same editor. One is Instagram’s inventory. The other is yours.
The platform will keep changing its mind. The question your buyer asks remains the same.
So here’s the move.
The next time someone in your company says, “we should be doing video,” and they will, don’t answer with a platform. Answer with a question. Which question does a customer need answered before they’ll trust you? Make that the video.
Then let the platforms fight over the clips.
Two things to check this week.
Look at the last video your company made. If Instagram changed its rules tomorrow, would that video still be worth anything? Would anyone be able to find it?
Ask your marketing lead what the next one is for. If the answer is a platform, you’re building inventory. If the answer is a question, you’re creating an asset.
I’m Jeff Payne. Thanks for listening. I will see you tomorrow.
The Platform Changed Its Mind.
Your Video Shouldn’t Have To.
Two years ago, a marketing team could print Instagram’s own guidance and tape it to the wall: keep videos under three minutes, or they won’t be shown to anyone who doesn’t already follow you. Teams cut everything to fit. Interviews were trimmed. Customer stories were trimmed. Anything with a second act was gone.
This week, the same platform announced it is testing videos up to ninety minutes long, recommended in the main feed and accessible on your television. Same company, same audience, opposite instruction. Nothing about the customer changed.
What did?
Two reversals in two years
In July 2024, Instagram head Adam Mosseri said on the record that long-form video would hurt the product: people who watch a 20-minute video see less from friends, share less, and the friend connection was Instagram’s identity. The company would not chase it. In January 2025, Reels expanded from 90 seconds to three minutes.
On October 26, 2026, Instagram announced a new format called Features: horizontal video up to 90 minutes long, built for podcasts, interviews, and shows, and recommended in the main feed and on Explore.
Creators can cut up to 8 short Reels from one long video, each linking back to the full version. Instagram is pushing the whole package to its TV app.
Two things to keep straight. This is a test, first with a small group of creators in Brazil and now with a small group in the United States. If your company has a business account, the ceiling still applies this week.
90 minutes is one of several lengths being tested. But the direction is unmistakable, and the story is the direction.
This time, the reason wasn’t about how people behave. It was about where they are.
A platform just told you what it wants
Platforms rarely say out loud what they want from businesses. Usually, you reverse-engineer it from what gets shown and what doesn’t. This time it is plain: long, finished, horizontal video. The expensive kind. The podcast, the interview, the thing that takes a crew, a day, and an editor.
In exchange, you get distribution within their app on their terms, which they have changed twice in two years. What you don’t get is a share of the money.
YouTube pays Partner Program creators 55% of the ad revenue their videos earn and has reported paying more than $100 billion to creators, artists, and media companies over the four years ending in 2025. That is why the long-form creator economy grew up there. Instagram has said its own performance-based creator program costs more than it earns and that a long-term model is too early to discuss.
Read it the way you would read any offer. Someone wants 90 minutes of your most valuable contribution; they can re-the distribution price whenever they like, with no revenue attached. That is not an opportunity. That is a term sheet.
That’s not an opportunity. That’s a term sheet.
WHY 90 MINUTES — AND WHY NOW?
Platforms used to compete for the next 30 seconds of your customer’s attention. Now they are competing for the next 90 minutes, because that is where the advertising inventory lives.
Inventory is simply attention someone else gets to sell.
Every hour a person spends watching a long video on a living-room screen is an hour one platform sold and another could not.
Your customer’s attention is now the scarcest resource every platform is bidding on. Which is exactly why your business should own that resource.
This is one of the best written, most informative email newsletters I’ve ever read!
Thank you for sharing your expertise, and hope you’re doing well.
Beth Zimmerman
Founder, Executive Director
Two videos that look the same on the day they post
There are two kinds of video a company can make, and on the day they go live, they can be indistinguishable.
The first is built for the feed. It exists to be seen this week, and it does. When the week is over, it is over. If the platform changes its mind again, as it will, that video goes with it.
The second is built to answer a real question your buyer asks, answered by the person in your company who actually knows. That video is an asset wherever it lives. It can be searched. It can be found by the AI tools buyers now consult before they ever call you. And the clips, the eight short ones Instagram wants you to cut, stop being the product and become the advertising for it.
Same crew, same day, same editor. One is Instagram’s inventory. The other is yours.
The platform will keep changing its mind. Your buyer’s question remains the same.
The move
Three clients opened a call the same way this month: “We want to do video.”
Every one of them was right to want it. Not one of them said what the video was for.
The first question I ask is never about length or platform. It is: What question does a buyer need answered before they will trust you? Once you know that, the length picks itself, the platform is just a place to post it, and nothing Instagram announces next year can take it away.
So the next time someone in your company says, “We should be doing video,” and after this week someone will, don’t answer with a platform.
Answer with a question.
Which question does a customer need answered before they will trust you? Make that the video. Then let the platforms fight over the clips.
Check these two things
Look at the last video your company made. If Instagram changed its rules tomorrow, would that video still be worth anything? Could anyone find it?
Then ask your marketing lead what the next one is for. If the answer is a platform, you are building inventory. If the answer is a question, you are building an asset.
Sources and attribution: Camille Moore, “Instagram Just Introduced Long Form. Here’s What It Means For Your Brand.” Business of Brand (Substack), October 28, 2026 — the piece that inspired this episode.
Instagram announcement of Features, Series, and linked Reels by Adam Mosseri and Tessa Lyons on October 26, 2026, as reported by The Verge, Variety, TechCrunch, and The Hollywood Reporter.
TechCrunch, July 2024 — Mosseri’s statement that Instagram would not pursue long-form video.
The Verge, January 2025 — Reels limit increased from 90 seconds to 3 minutes.
YouTube Partner Program revenue share (55%) and YouTube’s reported $100B+ paid to creators, artists, and media companies over four years.
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