TikTok Increases Video Upload Limit to 10 Minutes

pcmag.com:

TikTok is shedding its "short-form" skin and rolling out the ability to upload videos as long as 10 minutes.

The popular app, which launched in 2016 with a 15-second limit, has slowly increased its threshold—first to 60 seconds, then three minutes, and now it's starting to encroach on YouTube's territory with a new 10-minute limit.

"We're always thinking about new ways to bring value to our community and enrich the TikTok experience," a TikTok spokesperson said in a statement emailed to PCMag. "Last year, we introduced longer videos, giving our community more time to create and be entertained on TokTok. Today, we're excited to start rolling out the ability to upload videos that are up to 10 minutes, which we hope would unleash even more creative possibilities for our creators around the world."

Social media consultant and analyst Matt Navarra tweeted the news on Monday, posting a screenshot of an in-app notification announcing the update.

"I wonder if this expansion of longer video uploads has any link to the crisis in Ukraine and demand for longer-form news content or longer citizen journalism footage," Navarra wrote in a Twitter thread. The app, he continued, has a "big misinformation problem" that it "appears to be struggling (or less motivated) to tackle."

Moving forward, Navarra suggested TikTok "could do with a dedicated home for longer-form content in-app," adding that "it doesn't sit so well in the vertical feed with shorter stuff people are [used] to whizzing through at speed."

TikTok caters to short attention spans and limited concentration, which is why its minute-long videos so easily capture the attention of Gen Z users. But while other social networks try to be more like TikTok (Instagram Reels, YouTube