TikTok Confirms Pilot Test Launch of Stories Feature
Written by SOURCE on August 5, 2021
TikTok confirmed Wednesday that the platform has begun testing out a Stories-like feature that is called, you guessed it, “TikTok Stories,” The Verge reports.
“We’re always thinking about new ways to bring value to our community and enrich the TikTok experience,” a spokesperson for TikTok told Variety in a statement. “Currently we’re experimenting with ways to give creators additional formats to bring their creative ideas to life for the TikTok community.”
TikTok Stories will borrow from the format used by Instagram Stories, which was inspired by Snapchat Story, and allow users to post content that will vanish forever in 24 hours. According to Gizmodo, the feature can be found on a newly added slide-over sidebar that will usher you to a carousel of content from the accounts you follow. Geekout founder and social media consultant Matt Navarra reported on the existence of TikTok Stories earlier today.
TechCrunch reports TikTok’s test pilot has only been running for “several days,” and the platform is looking to receive feedback by experimenting with a small handful of non-U.S. markets.
The arrival of TikTok Stories comes one day after Twitter shuttered Fleets, its own version of Stories, less than a year since its launch. A Twitter official explained at the time of the announcement that the decision to shut down Fleets was due to a lack of increased engagement with the feature.
Also worth noting, a TikTok rep said that its Stories feature may not be permanent.
