TikTok is testing a new “podcast” feature. It is a function that allows you to continue listening to the audio of the video even when the TikTok app is in the background.
Normally, when TikTok is closed, the video will stop playing immediately, but this feature will allow users to perform other tasks on their smartphone while watching the video.
Insider first learned of the feature’s existence in a post by content creator Emily Skvarch (@future4caster). An option to listen to the video as a podcast appears in the app, and a thumbnail appears on a page called “Podcasts.” There was also a banner message at the top of the screen that said, “Sound will continue to play when the app is put in the background.”
“I didn’t get any notification, but it’s so interesting!” Squeurch says. He said he didn’t know about the feature until an Insider asked.
TikTok is trying to get into podcasts because tech and media companies are scrambling to gain a foothold in the audio content world of podcasts. Podcast ad spend will reach $2.25 billion by 2023, Insider Intelligence predicts.
Many American consumers now see podcasts as more of a video-based medium than an audio-based one, according to a recent survey by data analytics firm Morning Consult.
Of the 2,202 people who responded to the survey, 46% said they preferred podcasts with video, compared to 42% who preferred audio-only podcasts. A third of respondents said YouTube was their favorite podcast app, followed by Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
With YouTube becoming a popular podcast platform, competitors like Spotify are adding video features to lure in top podcasters like Joe Rogan, he said. Several people have responded to questions from Insider.
Spotify and TikTok aim to reach the next generation of listeners
Spotify has invested heavily in podcasts over the last few years, acquiring the likes of Anchor, Gimlet Media and The Ringer, as well as acquiring Joe Rogan, Emma He has signed exclusive deals and demo deals with celebrities such as Emma Chamberlain, Ava DuVernay and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
Spotify has frozen the budget for new podcasts in the U.S. this week, Bloomberg reports, because those investment strategies hurt the company’s bottom line.
Spotify CEO Daniel Ek said at Spotify’s investor event in June 2022:
“The podcast segment is still in the investment stage and is not yet profitable. However, we believe the podcast segment has the potential to generate 40-50% gross profit.”
Spotify and TikTok appear to be gearing up for a serious competition in the consumer voice space in the coming months. Spotify dominates the music streaming space, but TikTok is already one of the top platforms for discovering new music.
Spotify CEO Ek told Bloomberg in November 2021 that Spotify “has room for improvement” when it comes to attracting younger users that TikTok has successfully captured.
Spotify has since mimicked TikTok’s practice by piloting a TikTok-like feed to make it easier to discover new audio content on the Spotify app.
Spotify also competes in three global markets with audio-streaming app owned by TikTok owner ByteDance. In May 2022, ByteDance will launch TikTok Music, an app that allows users to “buy, play, share and download music” and offer “podcast and radio broadcast content,” as Insider first reported. The trademark is applied for in the United States.
TikTok could pose a major threat to Spotify’s streaming business going forward. In 2022, TikTok will release a music distribution tool called SoundOn. It also has a dedicated team that handles sound functions that are mainly released on its own apps.
TikTok’s podcast ambitions remain unclear, but there are other signs that it may be targeting growth in the podcast space. For example, podcast hosting and distribution platform Audiomeans told Podnews in October 2022 that a bot had started collecting data on Audiomeans’ podcast feeds, and that the bot was owned by TikTok. It is said that it was a thing.
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(Edited by Sayuri Daimon)
Source: BusinessInsider
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