"Ex-boyfriend on alert," "Instagram will be doomed soon"... Netizens lament as paid subscription launches [What do you think?]

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[Financial News] Netizens in South Korea have reacted to Instagram's move to monetize core communication features that had long been free and to introduce a monthly subscription service, Instagram Plus, which applies algorithmic exposure differently depending on financial capacity.
Naomi Gleit, Meta's Chief Product Officer (CPO), posted a video on her official Instagram account on the 27th of last month and announced that paid subscription services for general users, including Instagram Plus and Facebook Plus, would be officially launched in global markets starting on the 1st of this month, local time.
This came two months after a quiet pilot program began on March 30 in some countries, including Japan and Mexico, at a low monthly price of 319 yen, or about 2,800 won. The confirmed global price has been set at around $3.99 per month, or about 5,500 won.
Gleit added, "We will gradually expand this into Meta One, an integrated subscription service for creators, businesses, and Meta AI power users."
The news quickly spread across various online communities in South Korea through a post titled "Instagram after paid subscriptions," drawing intense attention from netizens.
The author of the post described Instagram Plus's main features as "viewing other people's stories without appearing in the viewer list and secretly watching them, checking who replayed my story and how many times, keeping my story up for more than 24 hours, and boosting story exposure once a week."
As for the premium tier for creators, the author criticized it by saying, "There is also a feature that lets creators buy the algorithm with money."
The author also pointed out, "If you buy Meta One Advanced for $49.99 a month, you get top placement in Facebook feeds and Instagram search results, a bold follow button on Reels, and even automatic follow invitations to people who react to my posts." The author added that it amounts to "selling algorithms to micro-creators who cannot afford ads."
After seeing the post, netizens expressed disbelief at Meta's contradictory approach of commercializing both privacy tracking and concealment at the same time.
One netizen said, "If it includes secretly viewing stories and checking who watched my story and how many times, who wins?" Another compared it to a game feature from the old PC communication era and said, "What is this, something like kicking someone out and kicking them back?"
There were also sarcastic remarks such as, "If I can check who replayed my story and how many times, my ex-boyfriend is in trouble," and "So this is a paid feature that lets you sneak around and watch things secretly."
The criticism was even harsher over the premium tier for creators. Some netizens strongly rejected it, saying, "Wow, buying the algorithm? That's insane," and "They're following the ultimate path of capital."
Others voiced fatigue over the platform's transformation and offered a bleak outlook, saying, "Instagram will be doomed soon" and "If this feature is implemented as is, it is a shortcut to collapse."
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sms@fnnews.com Sung Min-seo Reporter