Snapchat Opens Geofilters So Anyone Can Submit Location-Based Artwork

Snapchat has opened up its Geofilters tool to a broader community this morning, letting anyone submit artwork that will appear as a geo-targeted filter on Snapchat photos.

Geofilters debuted in July and were available to Snapchat developers only, but today Snapchat is opening up the feature to the broader community. The feature works by letting artists create filters for certain locations, which will only show up for users if they’re in that area.

Snapchat offers all kinds of filters for photos, including options for black and white, sepia, the time, the speed, etc. Geofilters are just another layer on top of that, but could potentially open up another revenue stream for the company.

On the website for Geofilter submissions, Snapchat asks businesses to sign in to submit, though it’s unclear if the company is currently charging businesses for Geofilter submissions or if that’s in the works for the future. We’ve reached out to Snapchat for clarification and will be sure to update you as soon as we know more.

Snapchat has been dipping its toes in a few different revenue streams, launching a feature called Snapcash in participation with Square to help facilitate payments between users. The company has also been focusing on Our Stories, event-based collaborative timelines that users can contribute to or follow from a distance.

Snapchat has raised a total of $163 million since launching in May 2011.

[via Verge]