TikTok is testing 60 Minutes videos, a move that could hurt YouTube

The update is the Chinese social media platform's latest attempt to expand its product offerings amid slowing user growth. When it first launched, the platform only allowed creators to post 60-second videos. The limit is now 10 minutes for all users and 15 minutes for some creators. TikTok competitors Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts offer similar upload lengths.

The test puts TikTok in the same weight class as YouTube. This would allow content creators to upload videos that require a longer duration, such as long-form tutorials or family and college vlogs that are popular on YouTube.

YouTube surpasses TikTok in terms of total users in the US. More than 80% of U.S. adults told the Pew Research Center last year that they had ever used YouTube, while 33% had used TikTok. The short-form platform's users tend to be young: 62% of 18- to 29-year-olds told Pew they use TikTok, and 93% of users in the same age group use YouTube.

But TikTok is ahead of YouTube in minutes watched: Last year, Business Insider sister company eMarketer predicted that adult TikTok users would spend an average of 55 minutes per day on the platform in 2024 – five minutes more than the YouTube average.

“Due to TikTok's shorter content, the platform is at risk of users discovering truncated content and leaving the platform to watch the full version on YouTube,” eMarketer analyst Sara Lebow wrote in December. “Increasing video length could prevent a user from watching half of a video essay on TikTok and completing the content on YouTube.”

Last week, BI reported that Google executives are encouraging employees who sell ads to take advantage of the possibility of a TikTok ban in the US by having “thoughtful conversations” with customers about the ban.

TikTok did not immediately respond to BI's request for comment.

The longer video feature can also put streaming services like Netflix, Hulu and Disney+ at risk. TikTok has a huge library of unofficially uploaded short clips from popular TV shows and movies that users watch with great enthusiasm Watch the show in its entirety. Access to longer videos of shows could make this activity more commonplace.

TV channels also use TikTok. Last year, streaming platform Peacock uploaded a pilot episode of its comedy show “Killing It” to TikTok. The episode, uploaded in five parts, was viewed millions of times. A longer video duration would mean episodes can be uploaded all at once, potentially shifting viewership from streaming services to TikTok.