Tech

Snapchat will redesign its app to be more like Facebook and Twitter

Key Points
  • Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel says Snapchat plans to redesign the app, including a new feed inspired by Twitter and Facebook.
  • The current app is too complicated to use, at least for users who don't want to dig through various menus.
  • A new app might help Snapchat increase its daily active users, which missed estimates on Tuesday.
Co-Founder and CEO of Snap Inc. Evan Spiegel.
Matt Winkelmeyer | Getty Images

Snap CEO Evan Spiegel said on Tuesday during an earnings call that Snapchat plans to redesign its application to create the next version of the social media feed.

There's no timing on the Snapchat redesign, Spiegel added. He hinted it would be the evolution of the social media feed, focused on friends and what people are watching currently. Twitter and Facebook were cited as inspirations. Spiegel said there will be ways to monetize the new feed, but did not provide any additional details.

The company is tweaking its app to attract new users who find it difficult to use. That likely includes older people who find the interface baffling — which might be one reason why Snapchat reported lower-than-expected daily active users (DAUs) of 178 million people in its third-quarter earnings report. Wall Street was expecting 181.2 million.

"One thing that we have heard over the years is that Snapchat is difficult to understand or hard to use, and our team has been working on responding to this feedback. As a result, we are currently redesigning our application to make it easier to use," Snap CEO Evan Spiegel said in a prepared earnings statement Tuesday.

That's true. In fact, Snapchat had a guide with more than a dozen drawings on how to use the platform in its S-1 filing.

Shares of Snapchat plunged after hours after its earnings missed on the top and bottom.

Disclosure: CNBC parent NBCUniversal is an investor in Snap.

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