Instagram is adding some new features today, including support for sharing your live location over DM “in select countries” (that aren’t named). This works for up to one hour at a time. You can also pin a spot on the map, for example to coordinate arrival to a specific place.
Live location can only be shared privately in DMs, either in a 1:1 or group chat. It is of course off by default. Only those in the chats you shared it to can see your live location, and they can’t forward your location to other chats. To ensure you don’t forget you’re sharing your live location, there will be an indicator at the top of the chat, and you can stop sharing at any time, even before the hour is up.
There are also 17 new sticker packs and over 300 new stickers available to share in your DMs, for when words “just aren’t enough”, Instagram says. You can favorite a sticker from your chat so you can re-use stickers shared by those you talk to.
Finally, names across DMs can be customized – you can add a nickname for yourself and friends. These nicknames only appear in your DM chats, and won’t change your username anywhere else.
You can change your nickname at any time, and you can decide who can change your nickname within a chat. This is set to people you follow by default, but you can have it so you are the only one with the power to change your nickname.
