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YouTube Shorts Are Getting Longer

Photo from Muhammad Asyfaul via Unsplash

YouTube Shorts Are Getting Longer

By Movieguide® Contributor

Short-form videos seem to be the way of the future, and YouTube is adding new features to improve its Shorts as it attempts to compete with TikTok.

As of Oct. 15, creators can upload YouTube Shorts that can be up to 3 minutes in length, a change the platform says creators have asked for. The Verge reported that the update also “lets creators reuse the format of other Shorts. YouTube says creators will be able to match their clips to trending sounds pulled from other videos, which is similar to a TikTok feature where users can pick from preset video styles and then tweak their own clips based on their preferences.”

For those who want to see fewer Shorts, YouTube introduced the “Show fewer Shorts” feature.

“You can choose this setting by clicking on the three dot menu in the upper right of any Shorts grid in your Home feed and we’ll temporarily show you fewer Shorts in your Home feed,” the company said.

In a YouTube blog that announced the new Shorts updates, the company mentioned other updates the platform recently made.

“A few weeks ago, we told you that Google DeepMind’s most capable model for generating video, Veo, is coming to YouTube Shorts. Creators will be able to bring their ideas to life with even more extraordinary video backgrounds and standalone video clips, making your Shorts even dreamier later this year,” YouTube said.

Movieguide® reported the new “YouTube Communities” feature will be a way for creators to interact with fans.

“The platform is looking to replace comments with Communities,” Variety reported. “That will include AI-enhanced reply suggestions ‘tailored to your style’ and other tools, including a community spotlight and audience metrics. Currently, the Communities feature is available to a limited number of channels; YouTube plans to test Communities with more users through the end of the year before broadening availability in 2025.”

Users can expect YouTube to continue making changes as it works to compete with TikTok.

Movieguide® previously reported on another new feature coming to YouTube:

YouTube revealed it is testing a new feature for its TV service that would allow users to continue audio playback of content while away from the video feed.

While the ability to continue audio playback while away from the video has long been available to premium subscribers, this feature has only recently been tested for YouTube TV subscribers.

“I can confirm that we are running an experiment that enables YouTube TV playback to continue after the phone screen is locked for Android and iOS mobile users,” Allison Toh, a product communications manager for YouTube, told The Verge. “If a viewer has the YouTube TV app on and then goes to lock their phone, playback will continue. If users want to avoid background playback, they can pause the video before locking their phone.”

This feature, if it were to be fully implemented, would be useful for those hoping to listen in on live TV events, such as the play-by-play of a football game while using their phone for something else, like GPS or directions.