Popular messaging app Telegram has announced the rollout of its Stories feature to Premium users. The launch comes a month after Telegram CEO Pavel Durov revealed plans to add the Stories function to the platform. An official date for the launch of Stories to non-Premium users has not been revealed.
In a previous statement, Durov shared that the demand for a Stories feature had been high among Telegram's user base, with over half of all feature requests related to Stories. Initially, Telegram was hesitant to introduce Stories, given their ubiquity on other platforms, but eventually decided to heed user requests.
The Stories feature on Telegram allows users to control who can view each of their stories. Options include making stories visible to all, to contacts, to selected contacts, or to a close friends list. Stories will appear in an expandable section at the top of the chat list, and users can opt to hide Stories from any contact by relocating them to the "Hidden" list in the Contacts section.
Further enhancing the user experience, Telegram's Stories feature will enable users to add captions and links, tag others, and simultaneously post photos and videos taken with the front and rear cameras. Users can also choose when their story expires, with options ranging from six to 48 hours, or even permanently displaying Stories on their profile page, similar to Instagram's Story highlights.
According to Durov, even the initially skeptical members of the Telegram team have grown to appreciate the Stories feature during internal tests. He added that the team could no longer envision the messaging service without this feature.
