YouTube is expanding its features for Shorts, its competitor to TikTok, with familiar functionalities that TikTok users will recognize. One notable addition is the inclusion of previews of live videos in a user’s Shorts feed. Similar to TikTok, viewers can click on these previews to watch the live stream and then scroll through a feed filled with other live streams. YouTube is also introducing monetization features, such as paid chatting and memberships, within this feed.
Full-screen live videos will be gradually rolled out by YouTube over the coming months. This move indicates YouTube’s intention to leverage the popularity of live videos and provide its users with an immersive short-form video experience.
In addition to live video previews, YouTube is also testing new tools to enhance the creation of Shorts videos. One of these tools allows users to create short-form videos from horizontal YouTube clips, providing the ability to zoom and crop the original video. This feature aims to empower creators to repurpose their horizontal content into vertical Shorts videos seamlessly.
Creators using Shorts will have access to a new suggestions feature that recommends audio clips and effects used in videos they want to recreate. This feature is modeled after similar functions on TikTok and Meta’s Reels. By selecting the audio clip from the same time stamp as the clip they are replicating, YouTube’s version simplifies the process of using audio and effects from other videos.
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Furthermore, YouTube is introducing a feature called Collab, which allows users to record a video side by side with another clip. This is similar to TikTok’s Duet feature and enables creators to collaborate and create original content. Collab will offer multiple layouts, offering flexibility and creativity to users in incorporating this effect in both Shorts and normal YouTube videos.
YouTube has been actively competing with TikTok’s dominance in the short-form video space. To attract more creators, YouTube recently lowered its eligibility requirements to monetize on the platform. This move opens up certain features of the YouTube Partner Program to smaller creators, providing them with opportunities to generate revenue from their content and build their online presence.
Overall, YouTube’s expansion of its Shorts features demonstrates its commitment to offering a comprehensive short-form video platform to its users. By incorporating popular functionalities from TikTok, YouTube aims to provide a familiar and engaging experience for creators and viewers alike. These new features, such as live video previews, enhanced creation tools, audio suggestions, and collaboration capabilities, contribute to YouTube’s ongoing efforts to solidify its position in the short-form video market.
