Snap is working on a new feature that will let users share stories outside the Snapchat app, according to a report from live streaming news network Cheddar. The feature, to be called “Stories Everywhere,” is designed to boost Snapchat’s presence beyond the core mobile app as competition with Facebook and Instagram heats up.

Since going public in February, Snap has had to deal with stagnate user growth and declining revenue, and the company suffered an abysmal third quarter this year as disappointing figures in both those departments sent shares into a dive. This is due to a number of factors, including Facebook’s ability to replicate Snap’s core features and place them in more popular and accessible products like Instagram.

Snap has since committed to making Snapchat more user friendly, starting with a redesign now rolling out but only available to a small percentage of users. Part of the redesign includes a more focused Discover feed, where Snapchat users can get news and entertainment from professional print, TV, and online outlets. It remains unclear how much the overhaul will affect user growth, but it appears Snap is now putting resources toward increasing the presence of both its user-generated and professionally crafted content across the broader web ecosystem.

Cheddar reports that former Storyful CEO Rahul Chopra, who was also an executive at News Corp, is leading the “Stories Everywhere” project at Snap with a focus on increasing user growth and making Snapchat a more engaging destination for news, sports, and other premium video and editorial content. The idea is that stories shared on news sites and elsewhere on the internet may drive more people to sign up for the app. Cheddar points out how Twitter, in 2011, made a similar move by letting people embed tweets off-platform for the first time.

https://www.theverge.com/2017/12/27/16823288/snapchat-stories-everywhere-facebook-instagram-off-platform-publishing