During the last few years, applications like YouTube and Instagram have wanted to adopt the short video model that has brought so much joy to TikTok. Almost ironically, TikTok now wants to go the opposite route: encouraging its users to create increasingly longer videos.
One of the keys that has always characterized TikTok is the brevity of its videos: in its beginnings, only 15-second shorts could be uploaded. Over time, the platform expanded its limits. First, it was 60 seconds. Then, 3 minutes. In 2022, TikTok extended the maximum duration of videos to 10 minutes. Now, the app is testing a new limit, 15 minutes. Even though immediate content is trendy, the audience seems to prefer much longer videos.
This is evident in the metrics, revealing that users now spend up to 50% of their time watching videos longer than a minute. To promote this change, TikTok organized a private event in late October in New York, attended by numerous content creators. According to an attendee, the social network executives explained to influencers how longer videos could enhance their earnings.
While YouTube used to lack a direct rival, it has now found a significant contender in TikTok. As if that weren’t enough, not only might we see an extension in the time limit, but also a change in format. TikTok is also exploring the possibility of allowing horizontal video viewing. These changes would also serve to attract more content creators and provide them with the necessary tools to share their message with the audience.
