What you need to know
- YouTube's TikTok rival Shorts is finally rolling to all creators in the U.S.
- Shorts launched in beta in the U.S. in March this year.
- YouTube has also added a few new features to its short-form video platform — including support for 60-second-long videos, new filters, and more.
After being limited to users in India for six months, YouTube Shorts finally launched in beta in the U.S. earlier this year. YouTube has now started to roll out its TikTok rival to all creators in the U.S. Along with a wider rollout, the short-form video platform is also gaining a bunch of new features.
The rollout was confirmed by YouTube in its latest Creator Insider video. According to the video, all YouTube creators in the U.S. are expected to gain access to Shorts over the coming week. To help make Shorts more popular, the platform is also gaining support for 60-second-long videos, new filters and effects, as well as a dedicated Shorts tab in the YouTube mobile app. You'll be able to access all these new features on any modern Android or iOS device, not just the best Android phones.
It is important to note, however, that you won't be able to choose music from the YouTube library if you select the new 60-second option. YouTube has also confirmed that it will be adding more filters and effects in the Shorts camera in the coming months.
For most users, the biggest change will be the new Shorts tab in the YouTube app. Instead of the Explore tab, you will now find the Shorts tab in the bottom bar. As can be seen in the screenshot above, the Explore tab has been moved to the top left corner.
While the wider rollout of Shorts is definitely good news for fans of short-form videos, many users are upset with YouTube for automatically opting-in their content to be used as Shorts on other channels.
