INSTAGRAM — Tech Stack

Instagram is a free, online photo-sharing application and social network platform that was acquired by Facebook in 2012. Instagram allows users to edit and upload photos and short videos through a mobile app.

Instagram (commonly abbreviated to IG or Insta) is an American photo and video sharing social networking service owned by Facebook, created by Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger and originally launched on iOS in October 2010.

CEO : Kevin Systrom

Developer: Facebook, Inc

Software genre: Social networking service

Category: Video hosting service

Instagram is a widely used social media platform. It is used by more than six hundred million active users. It is a platform where people can share photos, stories, messages, and many more fun things. It allows users to click, edit, and post their pics. This social media platform is insanely famous among the millennials. One can add their friends and follow them too.

Instagram’s expanded compatibility and improved versatility with mobile phones. Basically, being a mobile-ready, user-friendly and image-centered app makes Instagram a popular app and social network that has the potential to achieve bigger things in the coming years.

TECHNOLOGY STACK USED IN INSTAGRAM:

Technologies applied in Instagram are:

• React Native -iOS & Android apps
• Python (Django framework) & HTML5JavaScript -server-side
• Computing services -Amazon S3, Amazon, EBS, Amazon EC2
• Database -PostgreSQL

Django: It is a web framework of python. Django is the core of Instagram. It lets developers build plenty of applications. The entire thing is written in Python. The team at Disqus wrote the app “Sentry” which is a Django backed app. Sentry is used for reporting errors on Instagram. Django is integrated tightly which is the reason why Instagram starts quickly.

Celery and RabbitMQ are responsible for all the asynchronous tasks like sending notifications and operating background processes. Celery is a task queue that is based on the distribution of message communication. Its primary focus is on operations taking place in real-time. Scheduling is also supported by celery. RabbitMQ is a message broker. Advanced Messaging Queuing Protocol (AMQP) is used for writing it down.

Gearman: Gearman is the application responsible for the distribution of tasks. These tasks are distributed amongst many nodes throughout the system. It is also used for tasks like uploading pictures and stories. Gearman is basically a framework that distributes tasks to processes and machines. It has myriad applications that range from transportation of database to high available websites.

Pre-processor Node: This is used for attaching the required data to apply filters. Filters are applied on media content that has attached with itself metadata.

Parser Node: The extraction of hashtags that are attached with images is done with the help of the Parser node.

Scorer Node: As the name suggests, this node keeps a count of how many times a hashtag is used.

Ranker Node: Ranker node plays a crucial role as it ranks all the hashtags. It lets us know of the most trending hashtags. It basically computes scores of hashtags.

PostgreSQL: The platform’s data is stored by PostgreSQL. Data such as tags, photos, stories, and user data are stored.

Hive: It is used for the archiving of data. It is like a warehouse of data developed for analytics capabilities and data queries.

Redis: The sessions, activity feed, and other data are stored in this memory database.

MVP FUNCTIONALITY OF INSTAGRAM:

1. Authorization

• Creating a new account
• Signing in into the existing account via social networks

​​​​​​2. Editing profile

• Adding personal data
• Editing personal data
• Removing personal data

3. Post creation

• Uploading pictures taken in the app or existing images from the gallery
• Mentioning people, adding tags

4. Feed

• Subscribing
• Liking
• Commenting

5. Social features

• Sharing
• Inviting friends from Facebook

6. Image customization

Standard options like:

• Cropping
• Rotating
• Image adjustments
• Applying filters

7. Geolocation features

• Determining the geolocation of the existing image
• Determining current geolocation and adding it to the post

8. Messaging

• Text and photo messaging

9. Notifications

• Push notifications

10. Search

• By username or full name
• By tags
• By post description

How Much Does It Cost to Instagram?

In the table below, you can see the approximate time estimate for the MVP of a photo-sharing service:

App Development Cost = (Development Time iOS + Development Time Back End) x Hourly Rate + Design (UX/UI)

Based on this data, in total, development of the MVP for a social networking app will cost anywhere from $30k to $50k.

SWOT ANALYSIS:

STRENGTH: Father Facebook and millions of users

1.Financial backing from Facebook

Instagram exploded as one of the only social media platforms focusing primarily on the uploading of pictures and videos. Making captions and leaving comments are the main ways to communicate; however, you can also direct message (DM) people too. But the biggest advantage this platform has is the availability to Facebook’s deep pockets.

Facebook spent $1 billion to buy Instagram in 2012. Since Facebook is still the leading social media platform in the world, Instagram is easily following close behind. This should be a good thing, right? At one time, it was. Many social media platforms start then fizzle out within a few short years. With Facebook standing firmly behind it, no one carried the same fears for Instagram.

However, now that Facebook is repeatedly in hot water over data breaches and privacy allegations, some now worry that Instagram may be next.

2. A Massive Outreach

More than 800 million people currently use Instagram. How they use it varies by person. Some people use it as a collage to share family photos. Others use it to document adventures and exciting nights out. Many people use it for business, to showcase the behind-the-scenes of their products. And others use it to make tons of cash through product sponsorships.

3. Hashtags For The Masses.

You have the chance to reach massive audiences using dozens of hashtags. And people tend to be more receptive and engaging on this platform — a highlight for businesses. After all, it’s easier to snag someone’s attention with a photo while they endlessly scroll through their feed.

Weakness: Difficulties with communication, Facebook, and migrating traffic

1.One Way Traffic For Business

As a business, it’s hard to take the traffic gained on Instagram off of Instagram. Although you can link your website in your bio, the character space is limited. Likewise, linking a website in the caption doesn’t often warrant the foot traffic you’d expect. In fact, you’re better of using that space for hashtags and a caption.

2. Limited Communication

You can only talk in DMs and in comments. On a picture, you can only comment or reply to another person’s comment. Although other people can chime in, it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle of comments if there are hundreds of thousands.

3. Big bad Facebook

Then there’s Facebook. As stated above, the company is in hot water for data and privacy leaks. Some Instagram users have had similar problems with their private information being leaked. It’s fair to say, if a company is being shady with one of their products, it can happen with the others. In this case, the “other” would be Instagram. And yet, studies have said more people are deleting their Facebook accounts and migrating over to Instagram, despite the controversies associated with the social media giant.

Opportunities: Make money through your phone

1.Sponsorships and influencers everywhere

Instagram is the social media platform for sponsorship deals. Companies reach out to people with hundreds of thousands of followers, and pay them to show off a product in a photo. We now call these people “Instagram Influencers”. Their fans trust them. Their fans want to be them. So when an Instagram Influencer showcases a product, the fans are more likely to reach out and buy it.

Sponsorship deals have become a viable way for everyday people to make a living. It also helps celebrities, like the Kardashians who have millions of followers, to rake in even more dough. On the flip side, it’s also made it more difficult for people to trust labels, products, and people — because what if they’re just in it for the money, right? We’ve no way to know.

2. A social media made for smartphones

Instagram is also the perfect social media for smartphone users. You can easily take a photo from your phone and upload it directly to Instagram. Or you can update your Instagram stories on the go.

3. No Instagram app for iPads?

And not every device has access to the Instagram app. Although both Apple and Android devices do, the iPad doesn’t. There’s no iPad Instagram app to this day! You can gain access to the iPhone version in the app store, but the dimensions are all wonky on the large iPad screen. Maybe Instagram should make sure all of its users have access to the platform on any device?

4. Short video ads

More advertisers are using Instagram to create stories and mini ads. Although you can only make short, one-minute videos on Instagram, it’s still a viable way to get people who are mindlessly scrolling through their feed to watch your ad.

Threats: Competition and beauty standards

1. Visibility or invisibility?

Six years ago, it was much easier to be “seen” on Instagram. More companies are using Instagram to gain product interest and customer engagement. So, instead of asking “Are you on Instagram?” the question is now, “Who isn’t on Instagram?” It’s no wonder that being seen over millions of users is a hard-fought battle; there are so many accounts, and so much noise, it’s now difficult for new users to rise above it.

2. Scheduling systems

Not to mention, you can schedule your Instagram posts through social media scheduling software. Now you don’t need to be on your phone all day, every day. You can set up your posts days, weeks, or months ahead of time.

3. The quest for beauty

And then there’s the cosmetic side. It seems social media platforms and “selfie culture” are leading young men and women towards cosmetic surgeons. More people are opting for procedures like Botox, fillers, and Brazilian butt lifts to get the bodies they constantly see on the platform. Granted, these bodies are often edited or the result of phone filters. But after awhile, a person’s self-esteem can be negatively affected.

INSTAGRAM MISSION STATEMENT :

Instagram’s tagline is “Capture and Share the World’s Moments” and Instagram is all about just that.