As Instagram stopped displaying inline images on Twitter’s website, the social network plans to add its own implementation of Instagram-like photo filters in the official Twitter for iOS and Android apps.
Twitter is making a big push to release a series of photo filters to be used inside the official Twitter app before the end of the year, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The goal is to release the camera filters in an application update in time for the holiday season, these sources say.
The app is already being beta tested by Twitter employees, who are posting an increased number of filtered pictures on their timeline. As The Next Web points out, even the name for the beta build of the app seems to have a slight difference in spacing:
Notice the extra spacing?
Here are a few filtered images posted by Twitter employees:
This MicroSIM adapter appears to be little more than a recommendation to use scissors. twitter.com/greenberg/stat…
— Ryan Greenberg (@greenberg) December 8, 2012
this gangsta stole my heart /cc @thinktopdowntwitter.com/pandemona/stat…
— Sara Haider (@pandemona) December 8, 2012
By getting the app out before the Holiday Season, Twitter’s hoping to capitalise on the surge in traffic, especially image sharing, typically seen every year.
As Twitter grows, it sees itself owning major portions of the technology associated with the service, and having more control over the end user experience. Twitter has actively discouraged third-party Twitter clients, introduced its own URL shortener, image hosting service, and now photo filters as well.
Would you use the filters in the Twitter iOS app more than Instagram? Let’s not, however forget this…
