Lydia Moynihan

Lydia Moynihan

Tech
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Elon Musk will bring video-only feed to X in bid to take on TikTok and Instagram Reels: sources

Elon Muskā€™s X could soon unveil a feź¦†ature putting it head-to-head with TikTok and Instagram Reelš“„§s. 

The company is prepping the launch of a feature where X users will be servedą¶£ a stream of videos ā€” both short snippets and longer-form videos, depending on their interests, a source told The Post.&nšŸØbsp;

Sources at X described it as a way to highlight the video content that users are sharing ašŸ§”nd creating and organize it under one tab. A beta version is expected to be available to a select group of users later this ź§™summer.

Vine helped the Ice Bucket Challenge — which raised money for ALS — go viral. At its peak, around 200 million people used the app which had Twitter integration. Vines Collections/Youtube

Musk has wanted to launch an updated version of Vine, the fošŸŒžrmer 10-second video app which was once integrated into Twitter, since he bought the social media platformź¦— in October 2022.

In April, whether he should bring back VšŸŒ³inešŸ½ and nearly 70% of respondents voted yes.

ā€œVine was taken into consideration with this,ā€ one souršŸ’™ce said of the decision to launch a video platform inside Twitter. ā€œThe goal is to bring back that cool video experience.ā€

At its height, Vine hadš’‰° 200 million users and started viral trends like the Ice Bucket Challenge to raise money for ALź¦‰S research.

But Twitter failed to monetize Vine and the app was shuttered in 2017.

If the TikTok ban signed into law earlią¶£er this year goes into effect, millions of Americans may be looking for more platforms to share their videos ā€“ which could bring them to X.

Linda Yaccarino, is helping expand the platform’s exclusive content, which also includes attracting popular personalities and striking deals with major sports and media companies. D Dipasupil

The new product will also include a live streaming video element, a service users havenā€™t had since Twitter shut down Periscope in 2021, the source added.

That feature would be separate from the existing audio ā€œspacesā€ where users can have live chats with other X users and broadcast it to fļæ½ā„±ļæ½ollowers.

X sources are hoping a new Vine-inspired concept could also make money if users buy services like subscriptions and “verification.” X now makes nearly 25% of its income from selling subscriptions and licensing data.

Former Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, who has more than 2 million followers, earlier this year announced she was launching a new show with X. The company has said that “2024 will be “transformational” when it comes to creating new content. Stephen Yang

The move is part of a larger effort from X CEO Linda Yaccarino to expand the platform’s exclusive content, which also includes attracting popular personalities and striking deals with major sports and media companies.

The company has signed deals with the WWE, PGA, NBA, CondĆ© Nast, NFL and the WNBA to create excšŸ”Ælusive content for X.

TšŸ“he social media giant is also producing a long-form docuā™›mentary about the Boston Celtics, sources said.

It has also brought in namesšŸ’Ÿ like celebrity businesswoman Paris Hilton, sports broadcaster Jim Rome, and former Democratic Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard to create exclusive posts for X. 

Socialite and businesswoman Paris Hilton inked a special revenue sharing deal with X to post exclusive content on the platform. The heiress, who has more than 16 million followers on the social media platform. Getty Images for The Wall Street Journal

And the company is trying to attract smaller names with niche ź§ƒfollowings by sharing revenue with some creators on the platform.

ā€œX is becoming a new video destš’ŠŽination,ā€ the source said.

At the same time, X is gearing up to launch an app for smart TVs toā€ make it easier to watch longer videos on a bigger screen, a source with direct knowledge told The Post.

šŸ’The X TV app, which is still being developed, is expected to be available later š“°this summer.