Netflix’s Take on TikTok
TikTok’s trend of making short-videos is cashed by many tech firms to date. These include Reels from Instagram, Shorts from YouTube, and Spotlight from Snapchat. Now, Netflix too jumps into this space with its own version, but not with the same purpose and functionality.
The US OTT platform has announced Fast Laughs, which shows a never-ending scroll of comedy clips spanning less than a minute from its widest collection. Examples include plays from Ali Wong, Jerry Seinfeld, Kevin Hart, etc. Introducing this feature is justified since Netflix has openly considered TikTok as a competitor. This isn’t because both are in the same space, but users are seen spending more time on TikTok rather than on Netflix. Thus, Netflix had to do something to gain back their precious watch hours. Thus, the Fast Laughs. Available in Netflix iOS client, for now, the company hopes this new feature can pull back some of its viewers from TikTok. Since short-video are much entertaining to watch rather than lengthy ones, they attract immediate opinion on the content. Users interested in that clip can save the actual video to their watchlist for viewing later. What Netflix finally aims is to direct users to discover the wide range of content of has, especially stand-up comedy, where it has invested a lot.
