Netflix is planning to launch a TikTok-like offering in an effort to attract kids to its platform.
As Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday (Nov. 9), this new feature, called “Kids Clips,” will be available through the Netflix iOS app, showcasing short videos from the platform’s library of kids’ movies and TV shows.
The feature is due to roll out this week in the U.S. and the Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America, along with Canada, Australia and Ireland.
According to Bloomberg, Netflix confirmed the launch after its presence was found hidden in code by iOS developer Steve Moser and shared with the news outlet.
The purpose of the move is twofold: to expose customers to more titles in the Netflix library, while also engaging with younger viewers, who would otherwise be watching TikTok’s bite-sized clips or short videos on YouTube. More than half of TikTok’s users are between the ages of 16 and 24.
Netflix is calling this rollout a test, building on a feature called “Fast Laughs” that showcases comedy clips, which launched this year. Kids Clips will be similar to that feature, but the videos will play horizontally rather than vertically, taking up the entire screen. Kids will only be able to watch 10-20 clips at a time.
Read more: Pinterest Remodels Home Feed With TikTok Inspiration
Netflix isn’t the first platform to take a TikTok-esque approach to boost its audience. As PYMNTS reported last month, Pinterest unveiled a hot of new creator-centric features during its yearly Creator Festival, including a redesigned app that will transform the platform to look, feel and act a bit more like TikTok.
Changes to the Pinterest app that seem TikTok-inspired include separating the app into Browse, with the traditional Pin grid, and Watch, which includes full-screen vertical videos. The latter content is the lifeblood of TikTok, and Pinterest’s first-person videos are focused on user-created Idea Pins that often include narration or text overlays, similar to TikTok’s viral dance videos and catchy music.
Read more: TikTok Reaches 1B Monthly User Milestone
TikTok in September announced it had crossed the one billion monthly active users mark, a 45% increase from the middle of 2020.
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