TikTok is testing 60-minute video uploads, significantly increasing from its previous limits. The platform has been progressively expanding its video length limits, from 15 seconds per clip at launch to 60 seconds, then 3, 5, and 10 minutes in 2022. It began experimenting with 15-minute uploads last October and increased it to 30-minute clips in January 2024.
The move to 60-minute clips isn't surprising, but the key question is whether users will watch hour-long videos on the app. According to TikTok, creators demand longer videos because it provides them with more opportunities to create extended narratives. Creators often express the need for more time for cooking demos, beauty tutorials, educational lesson plans, and comedic sketches.
🥇 First contributor: Matt Navarra
However, viewers' demand for longer clips is uncertain. Meta is discouraging creators from uploading Reels longer than 90 seconds, suggesting a lack of interest in lengthy in-stream videos. Despite this, TikTok aims to expand its platform and become a bigger entertainment facilitator.
In 2024, TikTok launched a program incentivizing creators to post longer videos in landscape format. The Chinese version of the app, Douyin, has also been promoting longer videos. This could enable TikTok to compete more effectively with YouTube in the creator race.
Longer videos offer more monetization potential, allowing for pre and mid-roll ads. Currently, TikTok's monetization pathways are limited. The key motivation behind the move could be to reach parity with other platforms, enabling creators to build their home base in the app rather than using TikTok as a supplementary channel. The user response to this change remains to be seen.
