A new feature – a horizontal fullscreen option is now being tested worldwide with a chosen group of users by Tiktok which is the latest update made on the platform.
The Chinese powerhouse social media confirmed to TechCrunch about the test which is currently available to a small group of users who have been provided with a new full-screen option on the platform’s square and rectangle videos.
With the last few tests, the short-video social media platform now more closely follows Google’s Youtube. The brief, portrait-style video has indeed been TikTok’s identity and defining feature, but since its most recent testing, it has gradually begun expanding in YouTube’s domain.
The creators of TikTok often add a “turn your phone” message before someone could play and enjoy their video even if it is recorded horizontally.
With the coming of the new feature, the creators will no longer have to write the turnover message, the report said.
As there are always two sides to a coin, the opinion on the new feature is also conflicting with the users. Although some have accepted and welcomed the new screen feature others are criticizing TikTok for trying to be like YouTube and wish to keep the platform like it is.
The platform as we all know is growing among teens but it has faced and is facing many lawsuits in the United States. One such is on December 8 when the platform was sued by the United States over child safety and security.
According to the lawsuit, TikTok’s algorithms served up “abundant content depicting alcohol, tobacco, and drugs; sexual content, nudity, and suggestive themes” to users who were as young as 13, news agency AFP reported.
Indiana’s attorney general Todd Rokita said in a proclamation that the Tiktok app was a vicious and menacing threat unleased on the state’s consumers “by a Chinese company that knows full well the harms it inflicts on users.”
It is currently unknown when this mode will be accessible to all users or even if the company intends to release it. According to the TechCrunch report, if the feature is released, it might not appear exactly like the test product.
The popularity of the internet world of TikTok is still on the rise, but numerous nations including the United States, are now investigating the corporation.
The time limit of video that can be submitted to TikTok has increased to 10 minutes as of March this year. The videos were only 15 seconds long at the time of their first launch. Then the time frame was extended to 60 seconds.
The action will be seen by TikTok creators as a welcome addition. At present creators still have to include a statement in their videos instructing viewers to turn their phones to the side if they shot their content in landscape orientation.