YouTube's next big move to take on TikTok is to make it your go-to video service on TV.
In a blog post on the company's website, YouTube announced that it is completely revamping the YouTube Shorts experience on television. While YouTube Shorts have technically been able to be viewed on its TV app, it's been an admittedly half-assed experience as it's followed the same user experience as regular YouTube videos which are primarily shown in landscape mode.
With the new redesign, the company is trying to make watching YouTube Shorts on the television feel more natural with a native experience designed for the TV.
TV is YouTube Shorts' fastest growing device
Neal Mohan, YouTube's Chief Product Officer, said that the television is actually the fastest-growing surface for people who are watching YouTube Shorts. The executive said that "bringing Shorts to our community has transformed the way people create and watch video on YouTube. When we introduced this new format, we optimized the experience for the mobile creator and viewer. Today, we’re expanding viewing access to Shorts to our fastest growing surface: the TV screen. While this may seem like a natural next step, an incredible amount of thought and care has gone into bringing this vertical, mobile-first experience to the big screen."
You can check out the new design for YouTube Shorts on the TV below:
While the company had prototyped a maximal design at first, they said that "we simplified the design of the right side rail, but will be looking to bring in additional functionality in future releases."
The YouTube Shorts redesign for the TV app has started to roll out today. YouTube says that "over the coming weeks, this experience will be rolling out on TV models (2019 and later) and on newer game consoles."
