The company, which was acquired by Facebook earlier this year, announced on Monday a revamp of its usage policies as it looks to monetize its trove of user data. A blog post announcing the new policies has left users wondering whether their photos will be sold and used as ads, although the company's new policy states that users will continue to "own" their photos. On top of this, Instagram did not offer an "opt out" for users who are uncomfortable with the new terms.
The new policies are set to take effect on January 16, 2013, but Instagram has not explained why it made the changes. According to the AP, "The updated terms suggests that Facebook wants to integrate Instagram into its ad-serving system, which can, for instance, promote an item by telling users that their friends 'Like' it. The new terms make it clearer that Instagram could use your photos to market to your friends [...] It said a concurrent change to the privacy policy, a separate document, would help Instagram function more easily as part of Facebook."
Our intention in updating the terms was to communicate that we’d like to experiment with innovative advertising that feels appropriate on Instagram. Instead it was interpreted by many that we were going to sell your photos to others without any compensation. This is not true and it is our mistake that this language is confusing. To be clear: it is not our intention to sell your photos. We are working on updated language in the terms to make sure this is clear.
Systrom went on to say that the company did not plan to incorporate users' photos into advertisements and reiterated that users will continue to own their photos.
"The language we proposed also raised question about whether your photos can be part of an advertisement," he wrote. "We do not have plans for anything like this and because of that we’re going to remove the language that raised the question. Our main goal is to avoid things likes advertising banners you see in other apps that would hurt the Instagram user experience. "
Flickr
How's this for timing? Flickr just released a new iOS app for iPhone. It's slick, allows for easy browsing and yes, you can now add filters to your photos. It's a serious alternative to Instagram and it's sure to get a bunch of downloads as a result of the new Terms of Service on Instagram.
Twitter
Twitter just rolled out photo filters for mobile sharing on its service. All the photos you take and add filters to are associated with your page on Twitter.com. Meanwhile, Instagram removed its support for Twitter Cards, so you can't view Instagram photos in tweets.
Snapseed
Recently acquired by Google, Snapseed allows you to add photo filters to your pictures as seen here. The app also offers more advanced photo editing and tilt-shifting.
Camera Awesome
The free app from SmugMug is more of a wholesale camera app then a filter specialty app -- its specialty "Awesomize" button is a powerful auto-fix button with a great name -- but it does come with a healthy serving of 9 Instagram-like camera filters. The app's filters can be used with a cool sliding-scale functionality of distortion, so users can choose the hipness level they hope to achieve. Camera Awesome is super popular in the app store, and it's reminiscent of the late great WCW/ECW wrestler Mike Awesome, who delivered one of the greatest Power Bombs professional wrestling has ever seen. Wait, what were we talking about? Oh, right: Filters. There are also 63 more filters available for download; you can pay $0.99 for 9 filters or $3.99 for all 63. Camera Awesome is free in the iTunes App Store.
Pixlr-o-Matic
Pixlr-o-Matic is your standard phone camera, plus a whole lot (A WHOLE LOT) of really nice filters and after-effects for your pictures. In addition to 25 Instagram-like filters that can be added after the picture is taken, Pixlr-o-Matic adds 30 free light effects that integrate with your photo, as well as a large selection of borders. If you upgrade to Pixlr-o-Matic PRO for $0.99, you can add dozens more filters and effects, and perhaps learn how to pronounce "Pixlr-o-matic" (my best guess: pix-lur-o-MAT-ic). BONUS: Pixlr-o-Matic also comes with a desktop app, which you can try out right here. Go on, make funny faces at your webcam at work! Pixlr-o-matic is free in the iTunes App Store and in the Google Play Store.
Camera+
One of the most popular third-party cameras for iPhone, Camera+ is probably the most well-loved for its well-designed, easy-to-use Lightbox editing suite. Lucky for those fleeing Instagram, that Lightbox also contains a huge set of filters and borders. The app doesn't come with a social network of its own like Instagram does, but if you're looking for an excellent camera first with Instagram-like filters second, Camera+ is a safe, attractive choice. Camera+ is $0.99 in the iTunes Store.
CamWow
CamWow is a camera app that's all about effects; unlike Pixlr-o-Matic and Camera Awesome, CamWow adds the effects in real-time, so you can see what the filters will look like as you're taking the photo. Instant gratification, as Rupert Wainwright might have said. The free version of CamWow is essentially pointless: A banner ad stretches across the bottom of the app, and you have to pay $1.99 to remove a hideous, Word Art-looking CamWow watermark from your photo. CamWow is "free" in the iTunes App Store, and with a $1.99 in-app purchase you can really try it out.
Hipster
No, this app doesn't show you what you would look like if you wore skinny jeans and smoked like a French person; rather, Hipster is a photo-sharing platform that turns your pictures into rectangular postcards of a sort. You can add text and a location to your photos (that's where the "postcard" analogy comes in), as well as a selection of 10 filter "themes." Like Instagram, Hipster boasts an active community of photo-sharers. Full disclosure: AOL, Huffington Post's parent company, recently acquired Hipster. Hipster CEO Doug Ludlow confirmed to TechCrunch, however, that the app will live on. Too bad Hipster went totally corporate, though, man, it was so much better when no one had ever heard of it. I was actually the fourth person to ever download Hipster, and man was it just a raw experience back then. Hipster is free in the iTunes App Store and requires a signup.
Tadaa
Speaking of excellent free iPhone cameras with a heavy focus on filters: Tadaa is a beautifully designed app with a ton of filters that can be viewed in real-time and adjusted after the fact, as well as options for rapid-fire shooting and tilt-shift photography (the thing you can use to make it look like you're shooting miniatures). It's one of the best, folks. The interface -- especially on the touch-calibrated editing suite -- is slick and attractive, and Tadaa also features a growing social photography community. Check it out. Tadaa is free in the iTunes App Store .
EyeEm
EyeEm encourages sharing photos of a similar type: There are groups for photos of New York, and for photos of coffee, and for photos of French fries; that means you can take a picture of your French fries, show other people who photograph French fries what you've done, and then look at photos other people have taken of French fries. Or, you know, whatever -- maybe I'm just hungry for French fries. The camera itself also features filters and a good selection of borders to hipster-ize your work. Logging in through your email or Facebook is required. EyeEm is free in both the iTunes App Store and the Google Play Store.
Hipstamatic
Hipstamatic takes the Instagram/Kodak connection to the next level: Where Instagram borrowed the filtered look from the venerable photography company and ported it onto the iPhone, Hipstamatic borrows the whole dang camera. Shooting with the Hipstamatic camera, you choose your film, your lens, and your flash -- the different combinations result in different effects. The standard app costs $1.99 and comes with three different flashes, film rolls and four different lenses -- you can buy more of these with "Hipstapaks," available to purchase inside the app. It's fun to use, if only because it might be the only camera for the iPhone on which you have no idea what your final product is going to look like until after it is "processed." Hipstamatic is $1.99 in the iTunes App Store. If that's too mainstream for you and you're looking for a free alternative (BONUS APP), check out Retro Camera Plus in iTunes here and for Android here.
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