Instagram lowers the quality of videos that are less popular

Have you ever wondered why some of your Instagram videos appear blurry, while others look sharp and clear? The reason lies in the fact that the quality of your video on Instagram depends on its view count.

Did you know that the popularity of an Instagram video affects its quality? According to Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, more popular videos are shown in higher quality, while less popular ones appear in lower quality.

Why does Instagram lower the quality of videos?

Mosseri explains that Instagram aims to display videos at the highest possible quality, but if a video does not receive sufficient views, its quality is reduced. He adds that for content creators who generate higher views, they provide better quality, but this requires more intensive CPU encoding and expensive storage for larger files.

Many users argue that this approach creates a system that favors popular content creators over newer ones. Popular creators share content in the highest quality, which boosts their popularity even more, leaving smaller creators in the background.