Rumor: Instagram Reels views and rewards have gone down

Short video views and rewards for Instagram Reels have dropped over the past month, as Meta sets higher targets for creators to get paid. That’s what video makers say. The algorithm no longer seems to prefer Reels.

a maker tells the Financial Times that a payout of $35,000 only follows upon hitting 359 million views. That was 58 million views until last month. Moreover, that target is more difficult to achieve due to a decreasing number of views on Reels. The algorithm seems to have a preference for showing Carousels to users rather than Reels. Carousels are posts with multiple photos. The income per view has decreased by up to 70 percent at other makers, they let the newspaper know.

It’s about makers who participate in the Reel Play Bonus Program, with Meta making individual agreements with creators to push the popularity of its TikTok alternative Reels by rewarding them extra for popular short videos. Other platforms have similar arrangements with video creators. Meta has not yet responded to the complaints from creators on its platform.