Skip to main content

Snapchat reportedly toys with the idea of making its snaps permanent

Snap Inc.

Snapchat’s characteristic disappearing posts could be threatened by the company’s latest financial woes. According to an anonymous source from “a person familiar with the matter,” Snapchat is toying with the idea of extending the life of public snaps, Reuters reported. The public snaps could see a longer lifespan or even become permanent.

Snapchat posts shared to our Story originally had the same 24-hour lifespan as private posts, but have already expanded to last for 90 days. These public posts inside the Our Story section are visible to any user on the platform and can also be embedded on the web. The anonymous source suggests that users could still go in and delete public posts if the platform doesn’t self-delete.

Snap Inc. is also considering a way to list the actual identity of the person behind the public post instead of the username, Reuters says. The changes could help make Snapchat’s recent option to embed posts more useable, preventing the post from disappearing from the webpage after it expires. Reuters suggests including the user’s identity could also encourage more platforms, such as news outlets, to embed Snapchat posts.

While encouraging more embeds could get posts in front of potential new users outside the app, Reuters suggests the move could also help the company financially. Advertisers may be more likely to invest in ads on a post that doesn’t disappear right away. Data that doesn’t disappear could also be used for studies, similar to the way Twitter sells data to research organizations.

The change could potentially help the struggling company, but Snapchat users aren’t exactly known for welcoming change. A redesign last year was met by an outcry against all the changes, leading Snap Inc. to continue refining the new design changes. Since then, Snapchat daily user counts have dropped. Moving away from the self-deleting posts could also have privacy implications, though the changes are directed toward publicly shared posts.

Snapchat hasn’t commented on the reports. The anonymous source says that the company is only considering the possibility and researching potential ramifications and benefits of the change — so while the move is a possibility, it’s also a change that may never launch live on the app.

Editors' Recommendations

Hillary K. Grigonis
Hillary never planned on becoming a photographer—and then she was handed a camera at her first writing job and she's been…
Recognizing that you have a life, Snapchat unveils games you can play any time
snapchat leaderboard games find my friends  hero triptych

Love Snapchat games, but can’t ever seem to have friends active at the same time? The social app’s latest addition to its new in-app games allows users to play anytime, while still competing with friends. Launched on Tuesday, December 17, Leaderboard Games is a new format for Snap Games that allows friends to compete against other friend’s top scores.

Snap Games debuted earlier this year, but multiplayer options require friends to play at the same time. The new Leaderboard Games allow for friendly competition on your own schedule. Score streaming displays friend’s scores live, as they play the game, for friends that want to check in. Friend’s Bitmojis will also peek in on the game as you play -- so even if the friend isn’t playing at the same time, their online likeness can still cheer you on.

Read more
Snapchat’s AR Time Machine lets you snap selfies of the future — or the past
Snapchat

In another example of social media platforms snatching up ideas popularized by other apps, Snapchat is offering users a glimpse into the future (or past) with an augmented reality (AR) Time Machine. The new Snapchat face filter, which begins rolling out Nov. 21, allows users to apply an aging effect, or to even make themselves look like a kid again.

The Time Machine filter alter the age of a subject in a selfie, forward or backwards, using a slider. Designed by Snapchat itself, it will be part of the feature carousel as it rolls out to users.

Read more
Forget the puppy ears. Snapchat and VSCO can make your snaps look like old film
Snapchat

What happens when you mix VSCO film-inspired presets with Snapchat’s augmented reality lenses? AR film effects like light leaks and flares. On Friday, November 8, VSCO announced the popular editing app’s first Snapchat lens, created in a partnership with the social media app.

Called analog, the Snapchat filter is designed, VSCO says, to recreate film’s "happy accidents," mistakes, and imperfections from the smartphone camera. The Analog lens has two filer options. Film creates light leaks, flares, glare, and distortions inspired by film cameras. Prism mimics the effect created when holding a prism up to a camera lens, creating refracted light and a doubling effect, as well as some random rainbows.

Read more