Elon Musk’s X may soon be unveiling a feature that will compete head-on with TikTok and Instagram Reels.
The company is preparing to introduce a feature that will give X users a stream of videos, both short snippets and longer videos, depending on the user’s interests, sources told The Washington Post.
X sources say this is a way for users to highlight the video content they’re sharing or creating and organize it in a single tab. The beta version will be available to a select number of users later this summer.
Since acquiring the social media platform in October 2022, Musk has been hoping to release an updated version of Vine, the 10-second video app that was once integrated into Twitter.
During April, Musk has 186 million followers When asked whether Vine should be brought back, roughly 70% of respondents voted in favor.
“Vine was looked at with this in mind,” one source said of the decision to launch a video platform within Twitter. “The goal is to bring back that cool video experience.”
At its peak, Vine had 200 million users and spawned trends such as the Ice Bucket Challenge to raise money for ALS research.
However, Twitter failed to monetize Vine, and the app was shut down in 2017.
The TikTok ban, signed into law earlier this year, could lead millions of Americans to seek out additional platforms to share videos, which could lead them to X.
The new product will also include a live-streaming video element, a service that hasn’t been available to users since Twitter shut down Periscope in 2021, the sources added.
The feature will be separate from the existing audio “spaces” that allow users to live chat with X other users or broadcast to their followers.
X sources hope the new Vine-inspired concept could also benefit if users purchase services like subscriptions and “verification.” X currently makes about 25% of its revenue from selling subscriptions and licensing data.
The move is part of a larger effort by X CEO Linda Yaccarino to expand the platform’s exclusive content, which includes luring top talent and striking deals with major sports and media companies.
The company has deals with WWE, PGA, NBA, Conde Nast, NFL and WNBA to create content exclusively for X.
The social media giant is also producing a feature-length documentary about the Boston Celtics, sources said.
They also brought in names like famous businesswoman Paris Hilton, sports anchor Jim Rome, and former Democratic Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard to create articles specifically for X.
The company also hopes to attract lesser known creators with niche followings by sharing revenue with some of the creators on its platform.
“X is becoming the new video distribution destination,” the source said.
At the same time, X is preparing to release an app for smart TVs that will make it easier to watch longer videos on a bigger screen, sources with direct knowledge of the matter told The Post.
The X TV app is currently in development and is scheduled to be released later this summer.
