TikTok announces lots of new Live Video Features

TikTok has announced a multitude of new live video features coming to the popular video app platform for both creators and viewers, including scheduled “events,” picture-in-picture support for iOS and Android, and group livestreams with two users. It’s part of the company’s increased efforts to push users to create and watch live videos.

A lot of the new features bring TikTok’s live platform up to par with other live video services, adding the ability for creators to schedule a stream in advance (which TikTok calls a “Live Event”) that viewers can register and receive notifications for. Creators will also be able to add countdown timers to regular TikTok videos in the form of a sticker to help promote their upcoming streams, too. Also new is the ability to co-host a livestream with a second person.  And if that weren’t enough, TechCrunch reports that TikTok is testing larger shared streams for the future as well.

TikTok is also expanding the rollout of its already announced Q&A feature for live videos to make it easier for hosts to engage with viewers in the middle of a stream. In a similar vein, though, TikTok is adding new comment filtering options to ban specific keywords from live chats, and the ability to designate moderators who can ban and mute misbehaving viewers.

And last, but certainly not least, the company is making it easier to find and browse livesteams with a dedicated “Live” button that’s already started rolling out to viewers’ feeds. TikTok also supports iOS and Android’s picture-in-picture modes, allowing you to continue to watch TikTok livestreams even when not in the app.

TikTok’s livestreaming features are still relatively new, especially compared to industry mainstays like YouTube or Instagram, but the new features that are rolling out today should help the social video platform better compete going forward.

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