For the first time, the YouTube app for Android has yielded to a younger competitor, TikTok, in terms of average viewing time, according to a report prepared by consultancy App Annie. We are talking about the United States and Great Britain. At the same time, YouTube still remains the leader in terms of the number of audience.
At the moment, YouTube has about 2 billion mobile and desktop users monthly, while TikTok’s audience is slightly more modest in this regard – 700 million.
Of course, the statistics are far from complete. Firstly, we are talking only about Android users, and secondly, if the “home” of TikTok China and its localized application for this region were taken into account, the statistics could be completely different.
One way or another, TikTok overtook YouTube in the UK in terms of view times back in June 2020, and the gap continues to widen. In the US, YouTube was in the lead until April 2021.
TikTok is promoted by the format of the application interface. It is optimized for vertical videos and can be easily controlled with swipes – this significantly increases the degree of audience engagement and, consequently, the viewing time. It is possible that the situation will change Shorts – a new project of YouTube.
The YouTube Shorts service has recently been available in new countries. It allows you to watch 60-second videos, is integrated into the main YouTube interface on Android and iOS, and is equipped with tools for recording videos and publishing them using a smartphone.
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ByteDance, the developer of TikTok, plans to borrow $ 5 billion for business development
Former US President Donald Trump insisted on restructuring TikTok’s business in this country; but as soon as his successor lost interest in this topic; the Chinese company ByteDance thought about raising capital for further development. The public offering of shares will get the attention of the Chinese authorities to such actions; so ByteDance intends to raise $ 5 billion in loans.
In mid-summer, experts estimated the capitalization of ByteDance at $ 425 billion; but the company needs hard cash not only to expand its business, but also to refinance old debt obligations. As noted by The Information , citing knowledgeable sources; ByteDance is now negotiating with banks to provide a loan for a total of $ 5 billion. More than half of this amount will go to refinance old debts; since now interest rates have dropped to an attractive level for such measures.
ByteDance intends to use the remaining funds to expand its business in the United States, Europe and Latin America; as well as other regions where it is necessary to develop server infrastructure and increase staffing. So far, neither the lenders nor the terms of the loan have been identified, but negotiations are underway.
