Founder and CEO of US online social media and social networking service Facebook Mark Zuckerberg reacts upon his arrival for a meeting with European Commission vice-president in charge for Values and Transparency, in Brussels, on February 17, 2020. (Photo by Kenzo TRIBOUILLARD / AFP) (Photo by KENZO TRIBOUILLARD/AFP via Getty Images)
KENZO TRIBOUILLARD
Shares of Facebook stock closed up more than 6% on Thursday following the U.S. launch of Reels, a new Instagram feature designed to rival Chinese upstart TikTok.
Reels is a short-form video feature that allows Instagram users to create content with overlaid audio and augmented reality effects, much as they already can on TikTok.
The feature was first launched in Brazil in November 2019, but on Wednesday, Instagram released the feature in the U.S. and other markets as part of its Instagram app.
For Facebook, TikTok has increasingly grown as a threat due to its growing popularity among U.S. teens and young adults. TikTok claims more than 100 million monthly active users in the U.S., a spokeswoman told CNBC.
