YouTube Shorts is set to launch in the US on the 19th of March. The beta version of YouTube’s competitor to TikTok has been out for quite a few months in India. However, the new platform will now debut in the United States along with an additional host of features.
Fundamentally, YouTube Shorts will be similar to any of the many clones of TikTok. It will feature a range of tracks from which creators can choose the song; a segmented camera with which creators can easily make a series of clips; including a pretty dependable caption tool. The last feature will be a brand new addition with the US release.
The Idea Behind YouTube Shorts
Todd Sherman, the product lead of YouTube Shorts, said that they are hoping to provide a playground. They hope creators can showcase their creativity with the raw materials that are being provided to stitch together the best content.
Similar to TikTok, users can keep swiping endlessly as an algorithm keeps supplying the next short video. Viewers can also, like YouTube and TikTok, add subscriptions of the creators they like, search up specific keywords and sounds, and even add their touch to other audio tracks. Admittedly, the appearance is akin to TikTok’s as well.
Shorts will not be a separate app, however, as it will feature as a feed on the mobile YouTube’s home tab. It does not have the dedicated manual tailoring of TikTok yet, nor does it have any collaborative features.
Sherman is hopeful that Shorts will allow YouTube content creators to break the current mold. Furthermore, subscribing to a channel means subscribing to their longer videos as well. Although starting behind TikTok on quite a few features, Shorts will be providing licensed music from the launch.
For now, Sherman and his team are looking into how to integrate Shorts with the main YouTube app better. That would be one of the more important factors whether Shorts can stand up to TikTok as an independent short video platform.
