Instagram disappointed with an anticlimactic announcement on Thursday, when the company unveiled its Instagram Direct messaging service.

Despite the hoopla surrounding the event, the service that allows users to send messages directly to friends is really just Instagram's way of playing catch-up with its competitors, CNET reported.

According to CEO Kevin Systrom, the messaging capability reinforces Instagram's communication philosophy.

"If we were about photography, we'd be built into cameras," he said at a press conference in New York on Thursday. "But, we're not built into cameras. We're built into phones."

Through the update, Instagram accounts can send photos or videos directly to up to 15 friends. Users will know when people have seen their messages through a checkmark that activates, similar to Facebook's message alert.

Like Twitter's direct messages, Instagram messaging can only be sent to people that users already follow.

Instagram, which was purchased by Facebook in spring 2012, is the latest social network to try to build its direct messaging capabilities.

Twitter updated its iOS and Android apps this week to allow users to send photos through direct messaging.

Los Angeles startup Snapchat, a more recent contender, is an obvious Instagram competitor. Its ephemeral messaging service, which lets users send text and photos with a 10-second time limit, is reportedly a big hit with tweens and teenagers.

With so many competitors, Instagram's direct messages won't give the company an edge on the playing field. Besides Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and texting, tech users can message each other through Apple's iMessage, WhatsApp or even BlackBerry's BBM.

"With the ability to send messages (but not photos) back and forth in a threaded conversation, Instagram is essentially trying to take on the giants of the instant message world. Good luck," wrote CNET's Roger Cheng.

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