Surprise: Instagram is copying yet another feature that Snapchat pioneered

In July 2014, Snapchat added the ability to see crowdsourced photos and videos from a specific location or event, like a concert or daily highlights from New York City.

Nearly three years later, Instagram is adding the same feature to its clone of Snapchat Stories, which shows photos and videos that disappear after 24 hours.

Instagram users can now add posts from their personal Stories to nearby locations. These posts will be selectively shown in Instagram's Explore tab, and they'll also be searchable by location and optional hashtags.

Location-based Instagram Stories are available through an app update on Tuesday, while hashtag search for Stories will be made available in the coming weeks, according to a spokesperson.

Tuesday's announcement is the latest in a string of features Instagram parent company Facebook has copied from Snapchat in recent months. Since Instagram Stories was released in August 2016, the feature has reached 200 million users, surpassing Snapchat's 166 million.

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