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Snap Technology

Snapchat lets users make their own Story playlists, downplaying publisher content

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By Seb Joseph, News editor

October 9, 2016 | 4 min read

For those Snapchat users frustrated at having to get rid of videos that automatically play in their feeds, rejoice now that app is rolling out a series of changes designed to prioritise friends’ stories in feeds over the more publisher-focused Discover feature.

Snapchat Discover

Snapchat lets users make their own Story playlists, downplaying publisher content.

Rather than have to sift through other posts to reach those of their friends, users can now create a playlist to solve this problem, which also demotes publisher’s Discover pages in the feed. Discover pages will still be accessible, though they will be to the right of stories in the feed, and so won’t be as accessible as they once were. Unfortunately, permanent playlists can’t be made yet so as to watch videos from the same people every day.

Snap Ads will now be weaved into Story Playlists but there’s also a new ad placement for those who decide to just watch one story at a time, which could sit at the end, reports Techcrunch. It means Snapchat benefits no matter how someone watches Stories, which is important given the company’s long-awaited IPO could be as soon as March with a valuation of more than $25bn.

The change is emblematic of the app’s insistence that it won’t compromise its user experience in its search for greater ad revenues. That’s key given Instagram’s attempt to replicate Snapchat’s Stories’ experience, which could hamper its growth the moment it starts to feel harder to see content from people or brands people are interested in.

The updates were introduced to some android users over the weekend and will reach all iOS and Android users soon.

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