

We hope they enjoy the experience and we are looking forward to testing it in other countries so we can keep learning from this.” Anecdotally this rollout seems a lot bigger than "a small set of people," but we'll have to take Facebook's word for it. In a statement to The Verge, Facebook said, “A small set of people were able to update to a new test experience for Instagram messaging. The update appears to be rolling out across iOS and Android, and for now, the transition is optional. Instagram's messaging icon changes to a Facebook Messenger logo when you update. On Friday, the Instagram app started popping up a message saying, "There's a new way to message on Instagram." Besides cross-communication between Instagram and Facebook users, the update promises a "new colorful look," emoji reactions, and the ability to swipe to reply to messages.

Late Friday, The Verge spotted the first move toward Facebook's unified messaging utopia- Facebook Messenger is taking over Instagram messaging. Last year, Facebook announced a plan to merge its three big messaging networks: someday WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram Direct would all be the same service.
