With TikTok announcing that it’s testing 60-minute video uploads, Thomas Walters, Europe CEO and co-founder of global creator agency Billion Dollar Boy, offers the following comments about what it means for creators, brands and consumers, along with his views on TikTok’s strategy, and how it could shake up the social media landscape:
“Although traditionally anchored in short form video, TikTok’s embrace of long form content isn’t a surprise. It’s a reaction to a wider shift in user behaviours as people increasingly move away from linear channels and consume a greater variety of content on their phones.
“YouTube has been a beneficiary of this shift, using Shorts as a gateway to transition users from short form to long form content. The approach has yielded strong results for creators and publishers.
“For YouTube, this creates monetisation opportunities with long form content providing more opportunities to sell premium placements – across pre and mid-roll placements, and through Line Ups, YouTube Select premium content packages. TikTok’s strategic shift to long form content will likely replicate this approach, opening up more revenue streams to the platform and its creators while also giving users more reasons to stay in-app rather than seek long form content elsewhere.
“For creators and brands, the diversification of content types is good news! Although longer form video is likely to appeal to smaller audiences, those tuning in tend to be highly engaged in the brand or creator. The rebirth of long form content also diversifies content creation opportunities, making it more accessible to brands and creators whose content works best outside the confines of the typical 10 minute duration cap.
“It’s a positive development for consumers too. In a space which has been dominated by short form content for so long, with a focus on high output production models, users’ social media feeds have become saturated. In this context, content diversity can only be a positive in combating creative fatigue.
“Caution is advised, though. TikTok shouldn’t lose sight of its USP and will need to ensure its long form offering doesn’t dilute its core popularity as a short form algorithm-led video platform that prioritises discovery. With other platforms also increasingly exploring long form formats, there’s a risk that their offerings become homogenised making the social media landscape tricky for brands, creators and consumers to navigate.”